If you own property, you’ll definitely want to brush up on your home state’s trespassing laws.
This is so you know exactly what your rights are when it comes to keeping people off of your property, and what the requirements are for you, as the owner, when it comes to posting or notifying others to keep off.
Similarly, if you are a hunter, hiker, camper or any other sort of outdoor adventurer understanding trespassing laws in detail is essential to stay on the right side of the law during your travels.
This is easier said than done, sometimes, because every state puts its own variations on trespass laws. Some states are strict, some are more relaxed but all of them are different.
In the case of Virginia, consulting the law books will show us many, many laws covering trespassing, but most of them are easy enough to understand with a casual read-through.
We will tell you what you need to know about the most important Virginia laws on trespassing in this article and share the most relevant excerpts directly from the state statutes.
Virginia Trespassing Law Overview
- Most types of trespassing are misdemeanors in Virginia, but a few are felonies.
- Virginia has laws concerning aerial surveillance and invasion of privacy with drones, and also a Peeping Tom statute.
- There are tons of sections covering trespassing on Virginia’s law books, but only some of them are relevant to most people.
What Constitutes Trespassing in Virginia?
Pretty much everyone knows what trespassing is, but by now you’ve probably figured out that every state has its own somewhat specialized definition for it.
In the State of Virginia, trespass is defined as going upon or remaining upon the lands or into or remaining in a building or any other premises belonging to another person lacking legal authority or explicit permission, or, having been forbidden from doing so or having permission revoked remaining after being told to depart.
Sort of an awkward way to define it, but that is the law for you. You can read it for yourself in the excerpt below taken directly from 18.2-119 of the Virginia State statutes.
Note: As I mentioned above Virginia has many, many statutes covering trespassing, and seemingly for every imaginable set of circumstances and possible violation.
Not all of them are included here, only the most important and relevant ones for the average person. This is done for brevity, and I highly recommend that every reader look up the statutes in their entirety for review.
18.2-119. Trespass after having been forbidden to do so; penalties
If any person without authority of law goes upon or remains upon the lands, buildings or premises of another, or any portion or area thereof, after having been forbidden to do so, either orally or in writing, by the owner, lessee, custodian, or the agent of any such person, or other person lawfully in charge thereof, or after having been forbidden to do so by a sign or signs posted by or at the direction of such persons or the agent of any such person or by the holder of any easement or other right-of-way authorized by the instrument creating such interest to post such signs on such lands, structures, premises or portion or area thereof at a place or places where it or they may be reasonably seen, or if any person, whether he is the owner, tenant or otherwise entitled to the use of such land, building or premises, goes upon, or remains upon such land, (…) he shall be guilty of a Class 1 misdemeanor. This section shall not be construed to affect in any way the provisions of §§ 18.2-132 through 18.2-136.
Does Virginia Require “No Trespassing” Signs?
Yes. No-trespassing signs are not always explicitly required, but they are required on certain kinds of property for protection under the law, and they do count as a notification against trespass for basically all kinds of private property that a person would own.
Go back and read through the excerpt from 18.2-119 above and you will see the mention of posted signage counting as a method of notification against entry for trespassers.
Is Fencing Required to Protect Property?
No. Curiously, fencing is not required to protect certain kinds of property, namely pastureland, as Virginia places heavy emphasis on notification via signage or directly either in writing or verbally.
What Other Marks Indicate “No Trespassing”?
None. Some states allow property owners to mark the perimeter of their property with fluorescent paint to serve as a notice against trespassing, but Virginia is not one of them.
It should also be noted that even though such markings, usually made with purple paint, are becoming increasingly common knowledge they still do not have the force of law backing them up in the state of Virginia.
If you are going to mark fence posts, trees, boulders, or anything else with paint on your property you’re doing so only for convenience and ease of reference, because it will not stop trespassing.
Can Solicitors Ignore “No Trespassing” Signs?
Yes, or at least they often will in urban and suburban neighborhoods.
Considering it that a solicitor will approach your front door to knock on it and ask for some of your time in order to deliver their pitch or try and sell you something, this is typically construed as them seeking out the property owner to ask permission to be on the land.
Whether you want to make a big deal out of this is up to you, but so long as they leave when you tell them it generally does not amount to much.
However, the practice is typically frowned upon in rural areas, and no solicitor can ever circumvent a locked gate or fence barring entry to your property.
Can Trespassing Result in Arrest in Virginia?
Absolutely. Virginia is another state that is pretty serious about trespassing on private property, and the various misdemeanor charges can still result in arrest, a jail sentence, and a sizable fine.
There are also various felony-level trespassing charges that will necessarily rate a lengthy stay in prison and even more substantial fines.
Can You Take Someone to Court for Trespassing?
Yes, you can. Any trespasser that does so repeatedly, with the intention of harassing or stalking you, threatening you, or for any other malicious reason can definitely be dragged into court for your trouble.
Likewise, any trespasser who does so deliberately or accidentally and damages your land or property can similarly be sued for it.
Section 18.2-121 codifies this further:
18.2-121. Entering property of another for purpose of damaging it, etc.
It shall be unlawful for any person to enter the land, dwelling, outhouse or any other building of another for the purpose of damaging such property or any of the contents thereof or in any manner to interfere with the rights of the owner, user or the occupant thereof to use such property free from interference.
Any person violating the provisions of this section shall be guilty of a Class 1 misdemeanor. However, if a person intentionally selects the property entered because of the race, religious conviction, color or national origin of the owner, user or occupant of the property, the person shall be guilty of a Class 6 felony, and the penalty upon conviction shall include a term of confinement of at least six months, 30 days of which shall be a mandatory minimum term of confinement.
Special Instances of Trespassing in Virginia
Virginia has tons of smaller, special statutes covering every imaginable kind of trespassing, set of circumstances, aggravated violation, and more.
Seriously, they have a lot, you need to look them up for yourself because there are way too many to include here.
However, one of the most relevant for our era is found in 18.2-121.3, which covers trespassing with an “unmanned aircraft system”, colloquially called a drone or quadrotor.
Bottom line, if you’re drone is over someone else’s property and comes within 50 ft of their dwelling you are trespassing. Also, there is a “Peeping Tom” statute in 18.2-130.
Read both for yourself below:
18.2-121.3. Trespass with an unmanned aircraft system; penalty
A. Any person who knowingly and intentionally causes an unmanned aircraft system to (i) enter the property of another and come within 50 feet of a dwelling house (a) to coerce, intimidate, or harass another person or (b) after having been given actual notice to desist, for any other reason, or (ii) take off or land in violation of current Federal Aviation Administration Special Security Instructions or UAS Security Sensitive Airspace Restrictions is guilty of a Class 1 misdemeanor.
B. This section shall not apply to any person who causes an unmanned aircraft system to enter the property as set forth in subsection A if (i) consent is given to the entry by any person with legal authority to consent or by any person who is lawfully present on such property or (ii) such person is authorized by federal regulations to operate an unmanned aircraft system and is operating such system in an otherwise lawful manner and consistent with federal regulations.
…
18.2-130. Peeping or spying into dwelling or enclosure
A. It shall be unlawful for any person to enter upon the property of another and secretly or furtively peep, spy or attempt to peep or spy into or through a window, door or other aperture of any building, structure, or other enclosure of any nature occupied or intended for occupancy as a dwelling, whether or not such building, structure or enclosure is permanently situated or transportable and whether or not such occupancy is permanent or temporary, or to do the same, without just cause, upon property owned by him and leased or rented to another under circumstances that would violate the occupant’s reasonable expectation of privacy.
(…)
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