Chap. 128.—An ACT to provide for the separation of white and colored passengers
in passenger motor vehicle carriers within the State; to constitute the drivers
of said motor vehicles special policemen, with’the same powers given to con-
ductors and motormen of electric railways by general law. [H B 264]

Approved March 20, 1930

1. Be it enacted by the general assembly of Virginia, That all
passenger motor vehicle carriers, operating under the provisions of
chapter one hundred and sixty-one-a of the Code of Virginia, shall
separate the white and colored passengers in their motor busses and
set apart and designate in each bus or other vehicle, a portion thereof,
or certain seats therein, to be occupied by white passengers, and a
portion thereof or certain seats therein, to be occupied by colored pas-
sengers, and such company or corporation, person or persons that
shall fail, refuse or neglect to comply with the provisions of this
section shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and upon indictment and
conviction, shall be fined not less than fifty dollars nor more than
two hundred and fifty dollars for each offense.

2. The said companies, corporations or persons so operating motor
vehicle carriers shall make no difference or discrimination in the quality
or convenience of the accommodations provided for the two races under
the provisions of the preceding section.

3. The driver, operator or other person in charge of any motor
vehicle above mentioned, shall have the right, and he is hereby directed
and required at any time when it may be necessary or proper for the
comfort and convenience of passengers so to do, to change the desig-
nation so as to increase or decrease the amount of space or seats set
apart for either race; but no contiguous seats on the same bench shall
be occupied by white and colored pasengers at the same time; and
said driver, operator or other person in charge of the vehicle, may
require any passenger to change his or her seat as it may be necessary
or proper; the driver, operator or other person in charge of said
vehicle who shall fail or refuse to carry out the provisions of this sec-
tion shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor, and upon conviction
thereof shall be fined not less than five dollars nor more than twenty-
five dollars for each offense.

4. Each driver, operator or person in charge of any vehicle, in
the employment of any company operating the same, while actively
engaged in the operation of said vehicle, shall be a special policeman
and have all of the powers of conservators of the peace in the enforce-
ment of the provisions of this act, and in the discharge of his duty as
special policeman, in the enforcement of order upon said vehicles; and
such driver, operator or person in charge of said vehicle shall like-
wise have the powers of conservators of the peace and of special police-
men while in pursuit of persons for disorder upon said vehicles, for
violating the provisions of this act, and until such persons as may be
arrested by him shall have been placed in confinement or delivered over
to the custody of some other conservator of the peace or police officer ;
and, acting in good faith, he shall be for the purposes of this chapter,
the judge of the race of each passenger whenever such passenger has
failed to disclose his or her race.

5. All. persons who fail while on any motor vehicle carrier, to
take and occupy the seat or seats or other space assigned to them by
the driver, operator or other person in charge of such vehicle, or by
the person whose duty it is to take up tickets or collect fares from
passengers therein, or who fail to obey the directions of any such
driver, operator or other person in charge, as aforesaid, to change their
seats from time to time as occasions require, pursuant to any lawful
rule, regulation or custom in force by such lines as to assigning sepa-
rate seats or other space to white and colored persons, respectively,
having been first advised of the fact of such regulation and requested
to conform thereto, shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor, and
upon conviction thereof shall be fined not less than five dollars nor
more than twenty-five dollars for each offense. Furthermore, such
persons may be ejected from such vehicle by any driver, operator or
person in charge of said vehicle, or by any police officer or other
conservator of the peace; and in case such persons ejected shall have
paid their fares upon said vehicle, they shall not be entitled to the
return of any part of same. For the refusal of any such passenger
to abide by the request of the person in charge of said vehicle as
aforesaid, and his consequent ejection from said vehicle, neither the
driver, operator, person in charge, owner, manager nor bus company
operating said vehicle shall be liable for damages in any court.