A proposed bill that would have made bullying illegal in Virginia has been continued to next year.
On Monday, lawmakers in the Virginia Senate Courts of Justice Committee voted 9-6 to continue SB265 “Autumn’s Law” to the 2027 General Assembly session.
The bill is named in honor of 10-year-old Autumn Bushman, a Roanoke County fourth grader who died by suicide after she was bullied at school.
Members of the Courts of Justice Committee debated how the proposed law would help rehabilitate students charged with bullying and how long the misdemeanor charge would stay on a child’s record.
“This seemed too harsh, understanding that it’s a serious problem,” said Sen. Barbara Favola, who represents parts of Arlington County. “The issue here is far more complex than the way the [bill] is drafted.”
Some lawmakers argued the bill needs to include language that requires early intervention in schools to prevent and address bullying.
“The schools are not well-equipped to help provide services that provide intervention in that child and in that child’s life for what they may be observing or seeing at home. And so it’s very hard to break that cycle for that child,” said Sen. Russet Perry, who represents parts of Fauquier County and Loudoun County.
“I think that this bill probably does need some work,” she added.
Other lawmakers—including Sen. Mark Peake and the bill’s sponsor, Sen. Bill Stanley—said the focus needs to be on preventing another child’s death.
“A student killed herself. A student is dead,” said Sen. Peake, who represents Bedford County, Campbell County and Lynchburg. “This bill is to protect students who have [been] forced by so much bullying that they kill themselves. We’re not talking about the bullier.”
“If we’re going to excuse these children that put the fear of death into another student, if we’re going to make excuses for them, then we’re going to see this continue,” said Sen. Stanley.
Three members of the public spoke out against the bill during the committee hearing, including a representative from the Virginia Education Association.
After the vote, Sen. Bill Stanley released the following statement:
“SB 265 exists because of a tragedy no family should ever endure. Autumn’s Law is about protecting children from severe bullying before it escalates into something irreversible. This week, Democrats in the Courts of Justice Committee chose to carry over this bill -- halting progress on a measure aimed at putting student safety first.
What was most disturbing was the direction of the discussion. We heard more concern for the bully than for the child being harmed. That’s backwards. If we’re going to excuse the children that put the fear of death into another student—if we’re going to make excuses for them—then we’re going to see this continue.
We can believe in intervention and remediation while still demanding accountability for the worst bullying. Compassion should never become a shield for repeated harm, and process should never become an excuse for inaction.
This isn’t going away. We will be back -- because this must be addressed. Every parent deserves to know their child will be safe at school, and every student deserves a system that steps in before tragedy strikes.”