A. Every person who is convicted of a felony offense committed on or after January 1, 1995, and who is sentenced to serve a term of incarceration in a state or local correctional facility shall be eligible to earn sentence credits in the manner prescribed by this article. Such eligibility shall commence upon the person's incarceration in any correctional facility following entry of a final order of conviction by the committing court. As used in this chapter, "sentence credit" and "earned sentence credit" mean deductions from a person's term of confinement earned through adherence to rules prescribed pursuant to § 53.1-25, through program participation as required by §§ 53.1-32.1 and 53.1-202.3, and by meeting such other requirements as may be established by law or regulation. One earned sentence credit shall equal a deduction of one day from a person's term of incarceration.
B. A juvenile convicted as an adult and sentenced as a serious juvenile offender under clause (i) of subdivision A 1 of § 16.1-272 shall be eligible to earn sentence credits for the portion of the sentence served with the Department of Juvenile Justice in the manner prescribed by this article. Consideration for earned sentence credits shall require adherence to the facility's rules and the juvenile's progress toward treatment goals and objectives while sentenced as a serious juvenile offender under § 16.1-285.1.
1994, 2nd Sp. Sess., cc. 1, 2; 2008, c. 517.
Notes of Decisions
Cited in
29
cases (
18 in the last 5 years), 2000–2025 · leading case:
Fishback v. Commonwealth, 532 S.E.2d 629 (Va. 2000).
Fishback v. Commonwealth, 532 S.E.2d 629 (Va. 2000).
· cites it 16× “01, and may also qualify for a reduction in sentence through an earned sentence credit calculation, Code §§ 53.1-202.2 et seq., commonly referred to as a "good behavior credit.”
Bell v. Commonwealth, 563 S.E.2d 695 (Va. 2002).
· cites it 6× “With regard to the issue of sentencing credits under Code § 53.1-202.2, we recognized in Fishback that a defendant’s eligibility for this type of early release remains dependent upon the prisoner’s conduct and participation in various programs established by the Department of…”
Booker v. Com., 661 S.E.2d 461 (Va. 2008).
· cites it 2× “At the same time, we held that juries should not be instructed on the issue of earned sentencing credits that a prisoner may obtain under Code § 53.1-202.2 through -202.4, thereby reducing his period of incarceration, because obtaining these credits depends on a prisoner's…”
Gary Wall v. Jeffrey Kiser, 21 F.4th 266 (4th Cir. 2021).
“See Va. Code Ann. § 53.1-202.2 . But an inmate’s good conduct credits can also be revoked for misconduct while in prison.”
Michael Ryan Bruton v. Commonwealth of Virginia, 755 S.E.2d 485 (Va. Ct. App. 2014).
· cites it 4× “However, the Court also addressed earned sentencing credits that a prisoner may obtain under Code §§ 53.1-202.2— 202.4, which were earned based on the future conduct of the prisoner and “the subjective assessment of that conduct” by the executive branch.”
Hills v. Commonwealth, 534 S.E.2d 337 (Va. Ct. App. 2000).
· cites it 2× “01 and Code § 53.1-202.2 et seq., which provide for geriatric release and sentence reduction for good behavior credit.”
Herrington v. Dotson (E.D. Va. 2025).
· cites it 16× “Va. Code Ann. § 53.1-202.2 (A) states that ESC “eligibility shall commence upon the person’s incarceration in any correctional facility following entry of a final order of conviction by the committing court.”
Robert Anthony Tyler Martinez v. Commonwealth of Virginia (Va. Ct. App. 2019).
· cites it 8× “The [February 6, 2018 order] does not provide that [appellant] be given credit for time served pursuant to [Code § 53.1-202.2(B)3]; the [c]ourt ordered [appellant’s] transfer to [DOC] because he had not adhered to the facility’s rules and because he had not made sufficient…”
White v. Dotson (ORDER) (Va. 2024).
· cites it 6× “The operative statute is Code § 53.1-202.2, which is titled “Eligibility for earned sentence credits.”
Prease v. Clarke (Va. 2023).
· cites it 4× “2 Code §§ 53.1-202.2 et seq. Under this system, all eligible prisoners could earn a maximum of 4.”
Anderson v. Clarke (Va. 2023).
· cites it 3× “Pursuant to Code § 53.1-202.2, he entered Virginia’s statutorily constructed ESC system, which is designed to incentivize good behavior and rehabilitation among inmates by awarding ESCs to inmates who demonstrate positive conduct.”
Simpson v. Youngkin (E.D. Va. 2024).
· cites it 3× “See Va. Code Ann. §§ 53.1-202.2 -53.1- 202.4.”
— Va. Code Ann. § 53.1-202.2(A) — 5 cases
Herrington v. Dotson (E.D. Va. 2025).
“Va. Code Ann. § 53.1-202.2 (A) states that ESC “eligibility shall commence upon the person’s incarceration in any correctional facility following entry of a final order of conviction by the committing court.”
White v. Dotson (ORDER) (Va. 2024).
“The operative statute is Code § 53.1-202.2, which is titled “Eligibility for earned sentence credits.”
Anderson v. Clarke (Va. 2023).
“Pursuant to Code § 53.1-202.2, he entered Virginia’s statutorily constructed ESC system, which is designed to incentivize good behavior and rehabilitation among inmates by awarding ESCs to inmates who demonstrate positive conduct.”
— Va. Code Ann. § 53.1-202.2(B) — 1 case
Robert Anthony Tyler Martinez v. Commonwealth of Virginia (Va. Ct. App. 2019).
“The [February 6, 2018 order] does not provide that [appellant] be given credit for time served pursuant to [Code § 53.1-202.2(B)3]; the [c]ourt ordered [appellant’s] transfer to [DOC] because he had not adhered to the facility’s rules and because he had not made sufficient…”
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