Alumna Asks Professor To Advise Virginia Task Force
How much power should ordinary citizens have to enforce criminal laws? It's an issue a Virginia task force is currently wrestling with and an issue University of Richmond School of Law Professor John F. Preis addressed at a recent meeting of the task force.
Richmond Law alumna Shannon Dion, L'01, who serves as Director of Policy and Legislative Affairs for the Virginia Department of Criminal Justice Services, asked Preis to provide guidance to the task force on the obligations and liabilities of citizens enforcing criminal laws. Recognizing the need for a constitutional law expert, Dion reached out to former professor John Douglass, who recommended Preis. "I didn't hesitate to seek expertise from Richmond Law. Keeping in touch with fellow alumni is good for both personal and professional reasons. Including faculty in my network offers even more value," Dion explained.
Preis, who teaches and writes in the areas of federal courts, civil rights litigation, and civil procedure, agreed to speak to task force members at a July meeting held at James Madison's home, Montpelier. The task force is chaired by Brian Moran, Secretary of Public Safety and Homeland Security, and composed of numerous legislators, law enforcement leaders, judicial and criminal justice personnel, and community leaders.
The task force is considering potential changes to Virginia's use of "Special Conservators of the Peace," or "SCOPs." SCOPs are not law enforcement officers, but they are authorized to do much of what fully trained police officers have the power to do, such as stop and frisk suspicious persons, pursue suspects in a vehicle, arrest suspected criminals, and use lethal force. Despite their similar powers, SCOPs are not subject to similar training requirements. Under current law, an SCOP status may be conferred on a person who has received only 24 hours of training (or 40 hours, if the person will carry a firearm). The question for Preis was: are SCOPs obligated to obey the federal Constitution, even if they are privately employed?
At the task force's July meeting, Preis advised members that SCOPs very likely must obey the federal Constitution. SCOPs exercise a "function traditionally and exclusively reserved to the state: the arrest of suspected criminals," Preis explained. This means that SCOPs may only arrest a suspect based on probable cause and must "Mirandize" the suspect before interrogating him or her, among numerous other requirements. Further, if SCOPs are not trained to obey these rules, the SCOPs' employer could face significant liability under federal law.
The task force is expected to make several recommendations about the SCOP program to Secretary Moran later this year.