Virginia statute
Va. Code Ann. § 16.1-256 — Limitations as to issuance of warrants for juveniles; detention orders
Current through 2026 Regular Session
Part of Article 4: Immediate Custody, Arrest, Detention and Shelter Care, Code of Virginia.
Full text of Va. Code Ann. § 16.1-256
Statutory text current through the 2026 Regular Session. This publication reproduces the text of the Code of Virginia from the official Virginia Law Portal API published by the Virginia General Assembly's Division of Legislative Automated Systems; it is not the official Code of Virginia.
No warrant of arrest shall be issued for any juvenile by a magistrate, except as follows:
1. As provided in § 16.1-260 on appeal from a decision of an intake officer to refuse to authorize a petition based solely upon a finding that no probable cause exists; or
2. Upon a finding of probable cause to believe that the child is in need of services or is a delinquent, when (i) the court is not open and (ii) the judge and the intake officer of the juvenile and domestic relations district court are not reasonably available. For purposes of this section, the phrase "not reasonably available" means that neither the judge nor the intake officer of the juvenile and domestic relations district court could be reached after the appearance by the juvenile before a magistrate or that neither could arrive within one hour after he was contacted.
When a magistrate is authorized to issue a warrant pursuant to subdivision 2, he may also issue a detention order, if the criteria for detention set forth in § 16.1-248.1 have been satisfied.
Warrants issued pursuant to this section shall be delivered forthwith to the juvenile court.
Official sources
Legal terms used in this section
This reference is informational and is not legal advice.