Office of Legal Affairs

The Office of Legal Affairs (OLA), Bureau of Strategic Governance (BSG), provides legal advice and training for the Department of State Police. Headed by a Lieutenant Attorney, the Office includes two sections, general legal and FOIA, both led by a First Sergeant Attorney. The general legal section provides advice to the Superintendent and all the Bureaus dealing with criminal law and procedure, civil law, procurement, personnel matters, legislation, and regulatory activities. The section serves as the primary liaison with the Office of the Attorney General for all legal matters and provides liaisons and research support to the Departments General Assembly team. The FOIA section administers the Departments Virginia Freedom of Information Act program, the handling of subpoenas for witnesses, the processing of subpoena duces tecum, and responding to discovery requests from both Commonwealth’s Attorneys and defense counsel. The FOIA section processed over 9,680 requests in 2023 alone. OLA provides legal instruction to the Department for basic and in-service training as well as regular updates on key changes in the law due to legislation and court cases. The office also prepares and distributes “Case Notes” a quarterly case law newsletter

How to request records from the Department