PORTSMOUTH, Va. (WAVY) – Visitors to the Portsmouth Courthouse are now prohibited from bringing cell phones, smart watches and recording devices inside the building.
A message on the City of Portsmouth website states the new guidelines became effective Thursday, Jan. 29, 2026. The Portsmouth Sheriff’s Office confirmed the new security guidelines in a social media post on Feb. 2, 2026, noting that all visitors must now undergo mandatory security screening.
The policy change marks a shift for the facility, which was previously one of the only remaining courthouses in the Hampton Roads area to permit cell phones. Under the previous rules, visitors were typically allowed to have phones in courtrooms as long as they were silenced or turned off…