The General Assembly passed a bill Saturday to allow college and university threat assessment teams in the state to access and discuss the criminal and mental health records of students deemed threatening to the public.
Del. Rob Bell, R-Albemarle, sponsored the bill, which states that it "exempts all records of threat assessment teams established at public institutions of higher education from the provisions of the Freedom of Information Act, and allows these teams to receive health and criminal history records of students for the purposes of assessment and intervention."
In a press release, Bell stated that he hopes the bill will allow the teams to operate more efficiently than in the past.
"The problem with existing law is that it doesn't allow the members of the team to share confidential information with each other," he said. "Law enforcement might know something important, but they can't tell the mental health representative, and neither can [they] share with the person from student affairs."
Threat assessment teams were mandated by the General Assembly in the aftermath of the April 2007 Virginia Tech massacre. When the teams identify individuals who may endanger others, the groups are supposed to take the appropriate actions, University Police Lt. Melissa Fielding said.
"When there is a situation with a student or any member of our community, and there is concern that there may be a potential threat, the team reviews the situation," she said.
A person is deemed threatening based on certain actions, such as writing something that generates fear or worry. Such a person does not have to be a student, as the bill applies to any member of a university's community, Fielding said.
The bill also protects against anyone who may take advantage inappropriately of an individual's private records.
"The new bill provides clear penalties for any improper disclosure of law enforcement and mental health records, and we intend to treat all such materials sensitively and confidentially in any threat assessment team discussions," Dean of Students Allen Groves said in an e-mail.
The University's threat assessment team includes University Police Chief Michael Gibson, Groves and other administrators and mental health officials.
Groves said the bill provides necessary fixes to the ways in which threat assessment teams currently function.
"The new bill seeks to fill an information gap that currently exists," Groves said. "It allows the police and mental health representatives on the threat assessment team to access relevant records in their possession and participate fully and candidly in any highly confidential discussion of a specifically identified potential threat."
University officials hope that the bill will increase safety in Virginia universities and prevent a recurrence of the violence witnessed at Virginia Tech.
"The sole purpose of the legislation is legal sharing of information that will allow officials to make appropriate decisions on a broader scale," Fielding said.
The bill has been sent to Gov. Bob McDonnell for consideration.
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