Did you know that dying by suicide is considered a criminal act in the Commonwealth of Virginia? Although the term suicide is not actually in the Virginia Criminal Code , it is still considered a crime for someone to take their own life due to the common law in place.
Common law is based on court verdicts instead of those made by legislatures. Virginia’s common law is still based on the English common law, which is a legal system derived from court decisions in England when the King was in power. Suicide, or self-murder, was considered a crime against the King because people were thought of as HIS subjects. The punishment for this was to take the deceased personal property and subject them to an improper burial, including mutilation of the body.
Interestingly enough, the Suicide Act of 1961 decriminalized this both in England and Wales, yet it is still deemed a common-law crime in Virginia. Common laws like this stay in effect until legislators pass bills to repeal them. I learned just recently that 2 delegates brought forth a bill to do just that. Delegates Simon and Feggans authored a bill, HB 81, which would decriminalize death by suicide, and took it to the General Assembly for a vote. As it turned out the final bill passed the House, 61-39, and the Senate, 21-19. This bill had bipartisan support, thereby making a stronger case for Governor Youngkin to pass it.
It was also supported by some pretty heavy-hitting mental health organizations, such as Mental Health of America of Virginia and VOCAL Virginia, along with many surviving family members who presented very moving testimony to the assembly. They spoke of the judgment they feel when this happens to their loved ones and the stigma attached to it. There were also adverse tax and insurance issues involved.
Sadly, Governor Youngkin decided to veto the bill, which was a huge disappointment to all involved, who counted on his support in getting it passed. I am still doing some research on why this was the case.
You may be reading this and wondering how on earth I stumbled upon this topic to blog about. The reason I chose this subject is because of our fallen service members to suicide and their dignity we should be protecting. As the daughter of a service member of the SEAL teams, with many friends of the same, there are more deaths in our community by suicide than ever before. Many of their families have submitted their brains to science for further study. All of them were found to have severe brain damage due to their many exposures to blasts that would cause damage deep in the layers of the tissue. Many end up with CTE ( Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy), after too many years of concussions.
Many SEALs and service members lost to suicide, served multiple tours in service to our nation, die with service-related brain damage. They are not of sound mind in the act. In my opinion, what is truly unbelievable is the fact that these heroes, who gave their all for our freedoms we enjoy today, are considered ‘criminals’ in the eyes of Virginia law. I only wish someone had brought this to Governor Youngkin’s attention before he went on to veto HB 81, and I hope if it is ever brought to his desk again, he will seriously rethink his decision.
Ultimately, the criminalization of taking one’s life is very diminishing to families who have lost their loved ones as a result of mental health struggles. Virginia labelling their loved one a common-law criminal only adds to the stigma often associated with suicide. I think we can all agree that suicide absolutely should not be seen as a criminal act, especially for those who have served our country. We need to protect their dignity like they’ve protected our freedoms.
ShoutOut! James Madison University 