Any person who maliciously destroys or devastates agricultural crops or agricultural animals having a value of $2,500 or more through the use of an infectious biological substance with the intent to (i) intimidate the civilian population or (ii) influence the conduct or activities of the government of the United States, a state or locality through intimidation, is guilty of a Class 3 felony.

Attorney's Note

Under the Virginia Code, punishments for crimes depend on the classification. In the case of this section:
ClassPrisonFine
Class 3 felony5 to 20 yearsup to $100,000
For details, see Va. Code § 18.2-10

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Terms Used In Virginia Code 18.2-46.7

  • Locality: means a county, city, or town as the context may require. See Virginia Code 1-221
  • Person: includes any individual, corporation, partnership, association, cooperative, limited liability company, trust, joint venture, government, political subdivision, or any other legal or commercial entity and any successor, representative, agent, agency, or instrumentality thereof. See Virginia Code 1-230
  • State: when applied to a part of the United States, includes any of the 50 states, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands, and the United States Virgin Islands. See Virginia Code 1-245
  • United States: includes the 50 states, the District of Columbia the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands and the United States Virgin Islands. See Virginia Code 1-255

For the purposes of this section “agricultural animal” means all livestock and poultry as defined in § 3.2-5900 and “agricultural crop” means cultivated plants or produce, including grain, silage, forages, oilseeds, vegetables, fruits, nursery stock or turf grass.

2002, cc. 588, 623.