virginia
Does a statute of limitation apply to Virginia&#39;s mask law?
<p>Virginia <a href="https://law.lis.virginia.gov/vacode/title18.2/chapter9/section18.2-422/" rel="nofollow noreferrer">§ 18.2-422</a> makes wearing a KKK hood or other face covering a felony, both in public, and in private unless it is with the owner's written permission.  </p>

<p>Could someone (<a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/history/2019/02/02/northams-ugly-yearbook-photo-racist-origins-blackface/?utm_term=.59776ce533b6" rel="nofollow noreferrer">not mentioning any names</a>) still be prosecuted for violating this law in the 1980s?  </p>

<p>(Also, if it matters, the "with the intent to conceal his identity" clause was recently added. That phrase was absent in the 1980s.)  </p>

<p>Virginia's "limitation of prosecutions" is at <a href="https://law.lis.virginia.gov/vacode/title19.2/chapter1/section19.2-8/" rel="nofollow noreferrer">§ 19.2-8</a>.  Section 18-2.422 provides that the offense in question is a class-6 felony.  Nothing at 19.2-8 appears to apply generally to felonies nor specifically to 18.2-422.</p>

<p>Assuming that a person work a mask in public and <a href="https://law.lis.virginia.gov/vacode/title18.2/chapter9/section18.2-422/" rel="nofollow noreferrer">violated the law</a>, it could have been prosecuted as a class 6 felony. The <a href="https://codes.findlaw.com/va/title-19-2-criminal-procedure/va-code-sect-19-2-8.html" rel="nofollow noreferrer">statute of limitations</a> limits prosecution in cases where the accused has not fled the state. There are specific exclusions surrounding <a href="https://codes.findlaw.com/va/title-19-2-criminal-procedure/va-code-sect-19-2-8-1.html" rel="nofollow noreferrer">murder and manslaughter</a> where there is expressly no limit. Otherwise, the limit is between 1 year and 5 years, depending on the specific crime committed. There is no provision limiting prosecution for rape, robbery, or mask-wearing.</p>
