RICHMOND, VA (CVILLERIGHTNOW) — July has arrived, and that means more than 700 new laws have gone into effect. Some are specific, while others affect all Virginians.
Virginia’s public universities can no longer give an admissions advantage to applicants who have a family member who has attended to school. Lucia’s Kaw seeks to hold gun-owning parents more accountable. It’s named after Lucia Bremer, a 13-year-old who lost her life to nine rounds of gunfire from a classmate with documented mental health struggles who gained access to his parent’s firearm back in 2021. Irvo’s Law ensures people can be by a loved one’s side when they’re experiencing a mental health crisis. The law’s name comes from 28-year-old Irvo Otieno, who died while being restrained during a mental health emergency at Central State Hospital in 2023.