Escape without force or violence or setting fire to jail; penalties
Va. Code Ann. § 18.2-479
in effectA. Except as provided in subsection B, any person lawfully confined in jail or lawfully in the custody of any court, officer of the court, or law-enforcement officer, as defined in § 18.2-57 , for violation of his probation or parole or on a charge or conviction of a misdemeanor who escapes, other than by force or violence or by setting fire to the jail, is guilty of a Class 1 misdemeanor.
B. Any person lawfully confined in jail or lawfully in the custody of any court, officer of the court, or law-enforcement officer, as defined in § 18.2-57 , on a charge or conviction of a felony who escapes, other than by force or violence or by setting fire to the jail, is guilty of a Class 6 felony.
Code 1950, § 18.1-290; 1960, c. 358; 1975, cc. 14, 15; 1985, c. 555; 2005, c. 573 ; 2025, cc. 38 , 41 .
Source: Open US Law by Vaquill AI (CC BY 4.0)URL: https://law.lis.virginia.gov/vacode/18.2-479/Fetched: 10/16/2026