Spanberger signs bill to decriminalize suicide 

If you or someone you know is considering suicide please call the suicide hotline at 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline.

By Julianna Brown

Capital News Service

RICHMOND, Va. – Gov. Abigail Spanberger signed a House bill to decriminalize suicide after the legislation has failed to pass in previous years.

Del. Marcus Simon, D-Fairfax sponsored House Bill 43, which provides that the current common law crime of suicide be abolished. Simon proposed an identical bill in the 2024 session, which passed the General Assembly but was vetoed by former Gov. Glenn Youngkin.

Legislation to end the common law crime of suicide has been proposed multiple times since 2018. 

The bill requires the Bureau of Insurance of the State Corporation Commision to review the effects and implications of abolishing the common law crime of suicide on insurance by Nov. 1.

Families of those who have died by suicide are often denied certain benefits or programs because suicide is deemed a criminal act, according to Simon. His legislation seeks to remove the criminal act and stigma of suicide, so that families may receive benefits and grieve their loss, Simon said in a subcommittee hearing.

Under current law, the beneficiary of an insurance claim must prove that the individual who attempted or committed suicide was of an unsound mind, so that the act is not declared illegal, according to the Journal of the American Academy of Psychiatry and the Law.

If the suicide is deemed illegal, an insurance claim is not attainable, according to JAAPL. There must be expert testimony regarding the individual’s state of mind when the suicide took place in such cases.

Data from the National Council for Suicide Prevention shows the unadjusted suicide rate dropped 4.9% in 2024 following a spike in 2023. The suicide rate in Virginia has been lower than the national rate for the past 10 years.

Arguments Against the Bill

 Michael Huffman, executive director and teacher of constitutional law for the Virginia Assembly of Independent Baptists said it is OK to call something wrong.

The group is a ministry of local churches that lobby lawmakers at the General Assembly to protect religious freedoms. They also work to protect Second Amendment rights, and advocate for “pro-life and pro-traditional family initiatives,” according to Huffman.

“HB 43 is not harmless — it strips away the common law principle that suicide is a wrong that a state has the duty to prevent,” Huffman said. “That principle is the backbone of emergency intervention and mental health protection. Abolishing this sends the message that life is disposable.”

Huffman questioned if there is a correlation between HB 43 and assisted suicide.

 “I’m not saying that getting rid of the common law is linked to assisted suicide,” Huffman said. “I’m also not saying that it isn’t either.”

Todd Gathje, vice president of government relations for The Family Foundation, shared his disapproval of the bill at a subcommittee hearing. Delayed enactment of the bill is helpful, but there are still reservations due to the belief that killing is bad, Gathje said.

Support for the Bill

Nicole Durose, disability rights advocate for The Disability Law Center of Virginia, supports the bill.

“People are not going to not harm themselves because it’s against the law, but we do believe that passing this bill would be a step in the right direction for destigmatizing mental health,” Durose said during the bill’s hearing.

Rita Utz is the acting executive director for Mental Health Virginia, a nonprofit organization with a mission centered around education and advocacy. She also supports the bill.

“The assisted suicide piece looks more closely and specifically at the behavior and role of the physician rather than the individual,” Utz said. “That creates a significant distinction between those two pieces.”

The date of the bill has been pushed back to 2027 to allow a full scale analysis of insurance benefits and impact, according to Utz.

Jalna Harris is the network program director for Vocal Virginia, the only state-wide mental health advocacy and education nonprofit that is entirely staffed and governed by people who have experienced mental health challenges. The nonprofit was founded in 2000 and has over 2,000 active members who work to represent the voices of Virginians struggling with mental health challenges, according to Harris.

She said the abolition of suicide as a common law crime represents an important shift in how society understands and responds to mental health and personal tragedy.

“By removing the legal classification of suicide as a crime, the state helps reduce the historical stigma that not only affected individuals struggling with suicidal thoughts but also their families and loved ones, who were often burdened with shame or social judgment,” Harris stated. “Treating suicide as a public health issue rather than a criminal act encourages more compassionate responses, making it easier for people to seek help without fear of legal or moral condemnation.”

The law will go into effect on July 1, 2027.

Capital News Service is a program of Virginia Commonwealth University’s Richard T. Robertson School of Communication. Students in the program provide state government coverage for a variety of media outlets in Virginia.