Terms Used In Virginia Code > Title 54.1 > Subtitle II > Chapter 9 > Article 6 - Offenses and Penalties Generally

• City: means an independent incorporated community which became a city as provided by law before noon on July 1, 1971, or which has within defined boundaries a population of 5,000 or more and which has become a city as provided by law. See Virginia Code 1-208
• Contract: A legal written agreement that becomes binding when signed.
• Department: means the Department of Education. See Virginia Code 22.1-1
• Evidence: Information presented in testimony or in documents that is used to persuade the fact finder (judge or jury) to decide the case for one side or the other.
• Jurisdiction: (1) The legal authority of a court to hear and decide a case. Concurrent jurisdiction exists when two courts have simultaneous responsibility for the same case. (2) The geographic area over which the court has authority to decide cases.
• 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
• School board: means the school board that governs a school division. See Virginia Code 22.1-1
• School pupils and personnel: includes school bus patrolmen when performing duties either in or outside a vehicle as prescribed by the Board of Education. See Virginia Code 22.1-188
• 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
• Superintendent: means the Superintendent of Public Instruction. See Virginia Code 22.1-1
• Town: means any existing town or an incorporated community within one or more counties which became a town before noon, July 1, 1971, as provided by law or which has within defined boundaries a population of 1,000 or more and which has become a town as provided by law. See Virginia Code 1-254
• Trial: A hearing that takes place when the defendant pleads "not guilty" and witnesses are required to come to court to give evidence.
• Vehicle: means any vehicle owned or operated by, or owned or operated by any person under contract with, a county, city, town or school board in which any school pupils or personnel are transported at public expense to or from any public school. See Virginia Code 22.1-188