dismiss misdemeanor or non-violent felony charges against defendants with autism or an intellectual disability when the court determines that the defendant's criminal conduct was linked to such a disorder or disability and after the defendant has completed a period of probation. That same year, Northam signed a bill tasking the Virginia Department of Corrections with developing accommodations for people with developmental disabilities. Two bills expanding credit programs for Virginia inmates were signed by Northam in 2020. The first of these allows Virginia inmates to pay fines and court costs with community service credits earned during incarceration. Virginia law had previously allowed these credits to be earned only before or after incarceration. Northam signed the bill in March, saying that it would further prisoner rehabilitation and reintegration into society. The second of these bills increases the amount of sentence credits that inmates can earn toward early release. When Virginia abolished parole in 1995, it did so as part of a larger "truth in sentencing" initiative that also capped at fifteen percent the amount of time inmates could earn off their sentences through good behavior. The bill signed by Northam raises that cap, although only for certain inmates. Those who qualify can have their sentences reduced by up to a third. Deferred during Virginia's regular legislative session for 2020, the bill was passed and signed later that year, when Northam called a special session partially devoted to revisiting criminal justice reform. During that same special session, Northam signed a bill allowing defendants convicted by juries in Virginia of non-capital offenses to have their sentences determined by judges. Prior to this bill, juries in Virginia were responsible for determining the sentences of anyone they convicted, and judges rarely exercised their ability to revise jury sentences. The bill signed by Northam gives anyone convicted by a jury in Virginia of a non-capital offense the option to choose between having their sentence determined by a jury or by a judge. At the time of this reform, Virginia had been the only state in the country, aside from Kentucky, where juries were required to sentence anyone they convicted. This requirement had been part of Virginia law for over two hundred years. Most Virginia prosecutors opposed lifting the requirement, and the effort to do so failed during Virginia's regular legislative session for 2020, before nearly failing again during the special session. Lifting this requirement was one of