Mandatory disclaimer: I am not a lawyer. I am definitely not your lawyer.

Virginia’s legislature was busy this year (no child marriage! or declawing of cats! anyone can claim roadkill all year round!)

Among the laws that went into effect on July 1, 2024 were three relevant to firearms owners.

SB 44 / HB 36, also known as “Lucia’s Law,” provides for felony charges for a parent or guardian who leaves a firearm accessible to a minor they have been notified poses a danger to others. The law is named for Lucia Bremer, a 13 year old Henrico County middle-schooler who was shot by a 14 year old with a history of violent ideation who used a guardian’s loaded, unsecured firearm. Violation is a Class 5 Felony, punishable by up to 10 years in jail and up to a $2500 fine.

§ 18.2-311.1  prohibits possession of any firearm with serial numbers that have been removed, altered, obliterated, etc. There is an exception for antique firearms. Possession is a Class 1 misdemeanor, carrying up to 1 year in jail and/ or up to a $2500 fine. Sales or transfer is a Class 6 Felony, punishable by up to 5 years in prison or up to $2500. Note: serial numbers were federally mandated on all mass-manufactured firearms under the Gun Control Act of 1968, which also provided for federal penalties for removal or alteration of serial numbers. Note: Governor Glenn Youngkin’s changes to SB 100 and HB 173 removed language requiring serial numbers for homemade guns. Virginia does have a law prohibiting plastic guns with less than 3.7 ounces of electromagnetically detectable material recognizable via x-ray as a firearm (§ 18.2-308.5).

§ 18.2-308.5:1 bans “auto sears” devices that effectively convert semi-automatic firearms to fully automatic firearms. Auto sears have been federally regulated since the 1980s, when the ATF in 1981 interpreted auto sears as items requiring NFA registration and tax stamps, and functionally banned under the 1986 under the Firearm Owners Protection Act, which banned all auto sear devices manufactured or registered after 1986. Violation of SB 210 is a Class 6 Felony, carrying penalties of up to 5 years in jail and/or up to $2500 in fines.