Administrative Information

Access Restrictions

The records must be reviewed by staff for privacy protected information before serving. Extradition requisition and rendition letters from the Governor(s) may be served, however records including privacy protected information such as social security numbers may not. Privacy protected and confidential information is restricted from public access for 75 years per code of Virginia 42.1-78 , 2.2-3800 and 2.2-3705.1-8 . Restricted records were not removed from the collection. Types of information and records may include, but are not limited to: social security numbers, Department of Corrections inmate material, fingerprint files, mediation and settlement discussions, and attorney-client privileged material.

Use Restrictions

There are no restrictions.

Preferred Citation

Records of the Secretary of the Commonwealth, Extradition Requisitions and Renditions, 2010-2013. Accession 51137, State government records collection, The Library of Virginia, Richmond, Virginia

Acquisition Information

Stacy Whitehouse, Office of the Secretary of the Commonwealth, Patrick Henry Building, 1111 East Broad Street, Richmond, VA 23219, transferred 9 January 2014.

Processing Information

Original folder titles and physical order have been retained. Intellectual control and arrangement however, applied by processing archivist in 2022.

This collection has been processed using minimal processing standards: the original arrangement has been maintained, the container list is brief and simple, and the records have not been refoldered and fasteners have not been removed.

Biographical/Historical Information

The Office of the Secretary of the Commonwealth evolved from the yearly Secretary of the Colony. Early Secretaries were elected by the public. An Act of the General Assembly in 1920 changed the election to a joint vote of the General Assembly. In a 1930 Act the duties of the Secretary were redefined with the Secretary of the Commonwealth serving as the ex officio secretary of the Governor, as custodian of many official State records, and as keeper of the Greater and Lesser Seals of the Commonwealth. The office of the Secretary has gradually acquired other functions, such as: service of out-of-state civil process; appointment and regulation of notaries public; and registration and oversight of lobbyists. The Office became a gubernatorial appointment subsequent to a 1958 Act of the Assembly. The Secretary of the Commonwealth is under the jurisdiction of the Governor's Office.

In Virginia, the provisions governing extradition procedures are set forth in Sections 19.2-84 through 19.2-118 of the Code of Virginia. Requisitions and extraditions are handled by the Secretary of the Commonwealth.

Extradition is the legal surrender of an alleged criminal, apprehended in one jurisdiction, to another state, country or other government unit for trial. The accused can be extradited when he or she is charged with any punishable offense in the demanding jurisdiction. Extraditions are both received and requested by the governor. A requisition warrant documents Virginia's request of another state to return a fugitive to Virginia's jurisdiction. A rendition documents another state's request of Virginia to return a fugitive to the requesting state's jurisdiction.

Scope and Content

A typical requisition file contains an application from the Commonwealth's Attorney, a formal request by the Governor for extradition, and the Governor's request of one or more law enforcement officers to retrieve the fugitive. The Commonwealth's Attorney's application usually includes: copies of the indictment or arrest warrant with supporting affidavits and a statement of facts in support of a Governor's Warrant. Some files include a photograph of the subject of the requisition.

A typical rendition file contains a formal request for extradition from another state's governor, correspondence from the Office of the Attorney General to the Office of the Governor concerning the extradition request, and a copy of the notice of extradition sent by the Secretary of the Commonwealth to the wanted individual. The request for extradition usually includes: copies of the indictment or arrest warrant with supporting affidavits and an appointment of agent by the Governor. Some applications may include a photograph of the fugitive. Also included in each files is a Rendition Fact Sheet completed by the Secretary of the Commonwealth. The Rendition Fact Sheet lists date received, jurisdiction, fugitive's name and address, attorney's name and address, date charged as a fugitive, disposition of fugitive warrant, next scheduled court appearance on fugitive warrant, fugitive status (in custody or out on bond), list of pending Virginia charges and disposition and contact information for requestor.

The records from this collection must be reviewed by staff for personal and medical privacy protected information before serving. Both requisitions and renditions may include privacy protected information such as social security and fingerprints, and case, penitentiary, and arrest records.

Arrangement

This collection is arranged into the following series:

The files are arranged chronologically by year and alphabetically therein.

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