2026 Law Enforcement Symposium
In partnership with VA Dept. of Motor Vehicles Highway Safety Office.
Southwest Virginia Higher Education Center
1 Partnership CircleAbingdon, VA 24210
United States
The Virginia Law Enforcement Symposium is a two-day training program being conducted in partnership with the Virginia Department of Motor Vehicles. This symposium is open to ALL law enforcement and is approved by DCJS for 12 hours of partial in-service credits (10 hours Career Development & 2 hrs Legal).
Topics of training will include:
- Legal Update / Police & Supervisor Liability
- Commercial Vehicle Enforcement and Investigations & DMV Law Enforcement Division's Role and Support to Local Law Enforcement
- Identifying & Investigating Human Trafficking
- New Technology: Data Analytics System for Highway Safety (DASH)
- Advancing the Traffic Stop and Legal Considerations
- Vape Shop Investigative Strategies & Case Study
- Leadership: Crisis at the Top & Crisis Through the Door
Symposium Location
Southwest Virginia Higher Education Center
1 Partnership Circle
Abingdon, VA 24210
Symposium Start/End
Conference Registration Begins at 8:00 am on Monday, 4/27/26
Conference Concludes at 3:00 pm on Tuesday, 4/28/26
Registration Fee
The cost to attend is $75 and includes breakfast, breaks and lunch on both days.
** DMV Highway Safety Grant Recipients: Confirm with grant monitors the authorized use of current highway safety grant funding to pay for attending this training. **
Registration Cancellation Policy
If cancellation is received by April 20th, you will be eligible for a refund. No refund will be granted for any withdrawal notice received on or after April 20th. No-shows are not eligible for refunds; however, qualified substitutions are gladly accepted with prior approval.
Questions
Please direct any questions concerning this training to Audrey Altovilla at audrey@vachiefs.org.
Agenda
| April 27 | |
| 8:00 AM - 8:30 AM | Registration and Welcome Chief Jon Holbrook, Abingdon PD; and VACP Staff |
| 8:30 AM - 10:30 AM |
Legal Update, Police and Supervisor Liability
Review of new laws that directly impact law enforcement, discussion on police liability with emphasis on use of force case law, and supervisory liability. Speaker: Dale G. Mullen, Esq. – VACP/VACLEA Legislative and Legal Counsel |
| 10:30 AM - 12:00 PM |
DMV’s Law Enforcement Division Overview and Large Truck & Bus Enforcement
Participants will then gain a deeper understanding of federal & state regulations governing commercial motor vehicles and learn how local LE officers can apply effective enforcement strategies to enhance highway safety within their jurisdictions. Session will provide best practices for accurately identifying motor carriers during crash investigations, ensuring compliance and improving investigative outcomes. Speaker: Lt. Billy J. Johnson, Virginia DMV Law Enforcement Division |
| 12:00 PM - 1:00 PM | Lunch Guest Speaker: Harvey Powers, Chief Deputy Director, Virginia DCJS |
| 1:00 PM - 1:30 PM | DMV’s LE Division Overview and Large Truck & Bus Enforcement, continued |
| 1:30 PM - 3:30 PM |
Identifying and Investigating Human Trafficking
Train officers on recognizing human trafficking and appropriate response. Provide law enforcement officers an in-depth understanding of current indicators that they may observe in industries known for human trafficking. Strategies to effectively interview victims. Case study on a human trafficking identification and investigation. Speakers: Special Agent Kathryn Freeman – VSP, Human Trafficking Unit & Lead Intelligence Analyst Remington Pomaranski – VSP |
| 3:30 PM - 4:30 PM |
New Technology: Data Analytics System for Highway Safety (DASH)
DASH is a collaborative initiative led by the Center for Geospatial Information Technology at Virginia Tech, developed in partnership with Virginia Highway Safety Office and Virginia State Police. DASH is built on more than 1.7 million standardized crash records from over 14 years and is becoming available to all law enforcement in the Commonwealth. Speakers: Brandon Herndon and Joe Newman, VA Tech Center for Geospatial Information Technology |
| April 28 | |
| 8:00 AM - 8:30 AM | Breakfast |
| 8:30 AM - 10:30 AM |
Advancing the Traffic Stop (Look Beyond the Stop) and Legal Considerations
Advancing and conducting the complete, safe, and legal traffic stop for law enforcement officers. The topics include recognizing potential criminal indicators, legal considerations and case law, professional roadside interviews and officer safety issues. Speaker: Zach Miller, Instructor, Blue to Gold Law Enforcement Training |
| 10:30 AM - 12:00 PM |
Vape Shop Investigative Strategies and Case Study
The course will outline investigation strategies for commercial criminal enterprises, understanding the difference between industrial hemp and marijuana, laboratory analysis of products and criminal prosecutions. It will further connect participants with a network of other government officials who have successfully investigated and prosecuted these types of narcotics enterprises across the Commonwealth. Speaker: Investigator Steve Roberts Jr., Williamsburg Police Department |
| 12:00 PM - 12:45 PM | Lunch Guest Speaker: TBD |
| 12:45 PM - 2:45 PM |
TBDLeadership: Crisis at the Top and Crisis Through the Door
This session challenges LE leaders to examine how ethical failures and organizational crises rarely emerge suddenly, but develop through a series of tolerated decisions, misplaced loyalty, and unaddressed character risks. Drawing on real-world case studies, the session explores leadership breakdowns at the executive level as well as the quieter failures that occur during hiring, training, and supervision. Speaker: Dr. Eric Plummer, Chief of Police, Radford Univ. PD |
| 2:45 PM - 3:00 PM | Closing Remarks |
Registration Options
|
Registration Options
|
Credits | Price |
|---|---|---|
|
2026 Symposium Attendee
|
12.00 (DCJS PIC Hours) | $75.00 |
We do not have a block of rooms reserved for this training. If you require reservations, please contact an area hotel and let them know you need per diem lodging — they typically honor the state government rate. (Gov't ID may be required.)
If hotel assistance is required, please contact Audrey Altovilla directly at audrey@vachiefs.org
Holiday Inn Express & Suites Abingdon
Comfort Suites Abingdon I-81 (Closest to the meeting center)
