- Virginia lawmakers are preparing bills to restrict the use of attack-trained dogs in prisons.
- Virginia deployed dogs to attack prisoners 271 times in recent years, the most of any state.
Two Virginia lawmakers plan to introduce legislation meant to severely restrict the use of attack-trained patrol dogs in Virginia state prisons.
The legislative effort was sparked by a Business Insider investigation that revealed Virginia prisons had deployed patrol dogs to attack 271 incarcerated people from 2017 to 2022 — the most instances by far of any state. The attacks, used to enforce discipline, break up fights, or aid in cell extractions, left many prisoners maimed and traumatized. Only seven other states deployed attack-trained dogs on prisoners in that same period; Arizona, which was second in the number of recent deployments, used them to attack only 15 prisoners during that time.
Michael Webert, the Virginia House's Republican majority whip, has authored one of two bills that would significantly restrict patrol dog use in Virginia prisons. Webert's bill would prohibit deploying patrol dogs to attack people during cell extractions and bar their use in smaller fights or altercations — those involving three or fewer prisoners — except in the event of "imminent threat of death or serious bodily injury" to incarcerated people or prison staff members.
"The goal is to strike a balance between protecting the safety of corrections officers and inmates while achieving a reduction in patrol canine uses of force in Virginia prisons," Webert told BI in a statement. "Ultimately, we see our draft legislation as a way to help the Virginia Department of Corrections come in line with best practices as we have learned from law enforcement canine handlers without sacrificing safety within the DOC."
Holly Seibold, a Democratic delegate in the Virginia House, has also announced her intention to submit legislation to curb the use of patrol dogs in state prisons. "The stories that have emerged from Virginia are painting a troubling picture of human-rights violations causing lasting injuries and trauma," Seibold told BI. "It's simply unacceptable to weaponize animals to attack people."
"No other state deploys these canines to attack inmates at the rate Virginia does," she said. "The status quo is entirely unacceptable."
Both legislators plan to introduce their bills by January.
Either bill, if signed into law by Gov. Glenn Youngkin, a Republican, would have a dramatic impact on the high-security prisons where patrol dogs are deployed to attack incarcerated people as a routine use of force: Keen Mountain, Sussex I, Sussex II, Wallens Ridge, River North, and Red Onion. According to a trove of incident reports obtained by BI, at least 18 men incarcerated at those facilities have been treated at hospitals for crush injuries, muscle and tissue damage, or septic infections resulting from dog attacks since 2017. Many others suffered from psychological trauma for months or years after they were attacked.
Patrol dogs in Virginia also attacked at least six corrections officers from 2017 to 2022, according to incident reports obtained by BI. Some of the bites were severe, requiring emergency medical treatment.
Kyle Gibson, the director of communications for the Virginia Department of Corrections, said the department does not comment on proposed or pending legislation.
Proponents of the use of attack-trained dogs say they help keep prisoners and workers safe. Rick White, who has served as warden at Red Onion State Prison since 2021, previously told BI that the patrol dogs were primarily used for "presence," meaning the threat of their bared teeth and growls was sufficient to deter many violent incidents from taking place. He said the canine program at Red Onion, where BI tracked 72 patrol-dog attacks on incarcerated men since 2017, created a safe environment for group educational and religious programs.
Other corrections experts disagree, arguing that patrol dogs are unnecessary to maintain facility safety and security. "I am absolutely opposed to the use of dogs," Kathleen Dennehy, the former corrections commissioner for Massachusetts, previously told BI. "A dog going into a cell for the purpose of disarming someone or forcing compliance, to me, is a human-rights violation."
At least 23 prisons in eight states, including Virginia, have deployed attack-trained dogs against prisoners in recent years. The overwhelming majority of the more than 370 maximum-security prisons in the US do not use attack-trained dogs at all, though, a fact advocates have cited in supporting the new legislative efforts.
"Virginia needs to stop the barbaric practice of using attack dogs to intimidate and bite people incarcerated and trusted to the state's care," said Kim Bobo, the executive director of the Virginia Interfaith Center for Public Policy, a faith-based advocacy organization that is advocating legislative reform to the state's prison patrol-dog program. "Other states operate prisons safely without attack dogs. Virginia can too."