Chap. 2.—An ACT to provide that the Board of Supervisors of any County in this
Commonwealth having an area of not less than 500 square miles nor more than
600 square miles and a population of not less than 16,500 nor more than 18,000
according to the last United States census may establish a police force under the
terms and conditions set forth herein. [IS B 1]

Approved January 25, 1940

Be it enacted by the General Assembly of Virginia as follows:

Section 1. That the Board of Supervisors of every county in this
Commonwealth, having an area of not less than five hundred square
miles, nor more than six hundred square miles, and a population of not
less than sixteen thousand five hundred, nor more than eighteen
thousand, according to the United States Census of nineteen hundred
and thirty, shall have the power to establish a police force to be known
as a Special County Police Department, provided, however, that the
establishment of such department shall be ordered by the vote of the
Board of Supervisors entered of record at a special meeting of said
board called for the purpose of considering the matter after thirty days
notice published in a newspaper of general circulation in said county,
at which meeting citizens may be heard in advocacy or opposition
to said proposed action.

Section 2. The Board of Supervisors of each such county shall
have power to make provision for financing said force in the county
levy and shall have further power to do all things necessary to estab-
lish, organize and administer said department and to carry out the
provisions of this act.

Section 3. Appointment of police officers in such police depart-
ment shall be made by the Judge of the Circuit Court eizher in term or
vacation, upon request and recommendation of the board of super-
visors, which appointment shall be for the term of one year unless
sooner terminated by the action of the board of supervisors.

All such police officers shall serve at the pleasure of the board of
supervisors. One of the officers so appointed shall be designated chief
of police by the board of supervisors, which chief shall have super-
vision of said police department.

Section 4. All police officers appointed under this act shall be
conservators of the peace in said county and shall be charged with the
enforcement of all criminal laws throughout the confines of said county.
No police officer appointed under this act shall hold any other public
office, except that of notary public, and shall not have any other
employment. All of the members of said police force, except as other-
wise provided herein, shall be subject to the provisicns of sections
forty-eight hundred, forty-eight hundred and one, and forty-eight
hundred and two of the Code of Virginia, and possessed of all the
wers and charged with the performance of all the duties and obliga-
ns required of police officers by the aforesaid sections of the Code.
Section 5. An emergency is hereby declared to exist and this act
ill take effect from its passage.