2025 Virginia Good Samaritan Law Offers Safe Harbor
New Virginia Safe Harbor Law Takes Effect July 1, 2025
Picture this: you’re at an off-campus party in Fairfax when a friend slips into a frightening, unresponsive state. Or imagine you flee a bar in Manassas after someone sexually assaults you and your first instinct is to dial 911. Until now, many Virginians hesitated in those moments because they worried that calling for help would expose their own small-time possession of pills, a little weed, or the fact that they were underage and drinking.
Often labeled a “Good Samaritan Law,” Battlefield Law Group views HB 2117 as something stronger—a true Safe Harbor statute. When it takes effect on July 1, 2025, it should ease the hesitation to dial 911 during an overdose or after a sexual assault. Virginia’s brand-new House Bill 2117 (Acts of Assembly 2025, ch. 396) broadens the Commonwealth’s decade-old overdose-immunity law. Anyone who, in good faith, calls 911 or otherwise seeks emergency medical or police help for an overdose—or to report an act of sexual violence—cannot be arrested or prosecuted for the unlawful purchase, possession, or consumption of alcohol or marijuana; possession of a controlled substance; public intoxication; or possession of drug paraphernalia. The same protection applies if you are the person overdosing or the survivor of the assault, so long as you identify yourself to responding officers and the only evidence against you stems from your decision to seek help.
Why Lawmakers Acted
Legislators cited two public-health crises pulling in opposite directions. Opioid-overdose deaths in Virginia topped 2,100 in 2024, yet witnesses still hesitate to call 911 for fear of drug charges. At the same time, sexual-assault advocates reported that victims often delay or skip reporting because they were drinking or using marijuana when the attack occurred. HB 2117 aims to remove that chilling effect, telling witnesses and survivors: your safety is more important than a misdemeanor possession case.
What the Immunity Doesn’t Cover
The shield is broad, but not unlimited. If police discover large quantities of drugs where distribution of narcotics is suspected, a firearm by a felon, or you have an outstanding warrant when they arrive. In that case, you can still be arrested for those separate offenses. Nor does the law protect the person who committed the sexual assault. And if help is requested while officers are already executing a search warrant or making a lawful arrest, the immunity does not apply.
A Break for People on Supervision
HB 2117 adds one more safeguard. If you’re already out on bail, on probation, serving a suspended sentence, or on parole, a judge cannot send you back to jail just because of the drug or alcohol offenses the new law now forgives. Lawmakers made this clear so that calling 911 to save a life, or to report a sexual assault, won’t cost you your freedom over a technicality.
Practical Takeaways for Northern Virginians
Call first, cooperate second. Dial 911 or seek hospital help the moment an overdose or assault occurs.
Identify yourself and stay on scene so officers can confirm your good-faith role; then exercise your right to remain silent about anything else.
Document names and badge numbers in case there is later confusion about whether immunity applies.
At Battlefield Law Group, we welcome this life-saving reform, but we also know that officers sometimes test the boundaries of new statutes. If you or someone you love is charged despite HB 2117’s protections, our Manassas-based team defends clients across Prince William, Fairfax, Loudoun, Stafford, and Culpeper counties. Call 571-364-0500 or email: info@battlefieldlawgroup.com for a case review.
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This post is for informational purposes only and does not establish an attorney-client relationship. Laws change; consult an attorney regarding your specific facts.
