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Promoted from the diaries by streiff. Promotion does not imply endorsement.

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While the nation’s attention has focused on the assault on Virginians’ Second Amendment rights, the state’s Democratic delegation now wants to empty the state’s prisons as well. The new legislation under consideration is so extreme that even convicted murderers could receive parole.

The bill, SB624 “Geriatric prisoners; conditional release” allows non- Class 1 felons to petition the parole board for conditional release provided they meet certain requirements. While this description may sound reasonable on paper, the legislation in reality serves as false advertising. The term geriatric is another term for elderly yet two of the four conditions outlined in the bill allows individuals less than 60 years of age to qualify for conditional release. Anyone less than 60 is not elderly by any definition.

The legislation only gets worse. Class 1 felonies in Virginia apply only to a narrow range of killings, such as the murders of police officers or young children. This means that murderers middle-aged or older would qualify for release under SB624. This will essentially end life without parole under Virginia law and put entire communities at risk, especially when one takes the new gun laws into account. To illustrate the risk severity, hundreds of murderers between 2001 and 2005 were imprisoned in Virginia at age 40 or over.

While SB624 has yet to reach the floor of the House of Delegates or Senate, the legislation is on track to becoming public law with little fanfare. SB624 passed the Virginia Senate Committee on Rehabilitation and Social Services last Friday passed the SB624 by a 9-5 vote. The bill then passed the Finance Committee Wednesday by a 15-1 margin. The only thing that may stop this is a bipartisan public outcry or a sudden loss of interest by the Democrat-controlled delegation. Good luck betting on these outcomes.

Virginia Democrats have shown the country with their recent actions that they value the welfare of criminals over law-abiding citizens. For an accurate prognostication of Virginia’s future, look at the skyrocketing crime in New York and California since their “criminal justice” laws passed. Higher violent crime will soon prove a reality for Virginians.