August 5, 2009
Richmond - State Senator and Republican candidate for Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli submitted his bill on Tuesday to the Clerk of the Senate for consideration at the Special Session of the General Assembly on August 19th.
The Special Session was called by Governor Tim Kaine to address an issue that prosecutors from across Virginia are facing in light of the June 25th United States Supreme Court decision in the Melendez-Diaz vs. Massachusetts case. The special session was first requested by Senator Cuccinelli. Steve Shannon, Democrat candidate for Attorney General, called Cuccinelli's request a "political stunt" at first but now occasionally speaks in support of the Special Session.
"I was pleased to submit my legislation yesterday to the Clerk for consideration at the Special Session in a few weeks" said Senator Ken Cuccinelli. "This legislation will convert Virginia's laws to include a notice and waiver statute for certificates of analysis, allowing lab technicians to be notified in advance if they are required to appear in court. It addresses all different types of cases that were affected by the Melendez ruling: DUI cases, sex offender registry cases, drug cases, and others."
"The Supreme Court ruled similar statutes to that which I have proposed to be constitutional in Ohio, Texas and Georgia, and I'm looking to model Virgina code after these states on this particular issue. It should effectively address the problems our prosecutors have faced as a result of Melendez, although I do believe we will need to hire more lab technicians in order to catch us up on the backlog of cases that have resulted," concluded Cuccinelli.
If you would like to interview Senator Ken Cuccinelli or have any questions, please contact Chris LaCivita at 202 907 1055.
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