Introduced Version
Senate Bill 45 History
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Key: Green = existing Code. Red = new code to be enacted
Senate Bill No. 45
(By Senator Rowe)
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[Introduced January 14, 2004; referred to the Committee on the
Judiciary.]
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A BILL to amend and reenact
§
17C-5A-1a of the code of West
Virginia, 1931, as amended, relating to suspension and
revocation of a license to operate a motor vehicle generally;
and including a court-accepted plea of nolo contendere or no
contest to a criminal charge of driving under the influence of
alcohol, controlled substances or drugs as having the same
effect as a conviction in administrative license revocation
proceedings.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That
§
17C-5A-1a
of the code of West Virginia, 1931, as
amended, be amended and reenacted to read as follows:
ARTICLE 5A. ADMINISTRATIVE PROCEDURES FOR SUSPENSION AND
REVOCATION OF LICENSES FOR DRIVING UNDER THE
INFLUENCE OF ALCOHOL, CONTROLLED SUBSTANCES OR
DRUGS.
§17C-5A-1a. Revocation upon conviction for driving under the
influence of alcohol, controlled substances or
drugs.
(a) If a person is convicted or pleads nolo contendere or no
contest and the plea of nolo contendre or no contest is accepted by
a court with jurisdiction in the matter for an offense defined in
section two, article five of this chapter or for an offense
described in a municipal ordinance which has the same elements as
an offense described in said section two of article five, because
the person did drive a motor vehicle while under the influence of
alcohol, controlled substances or drugs, or the combined influence
of alcohol or controlled substances or drugs, or did drive a motor
vehicle while having an alcoholic concentration in his or her blood
of ten hundredths of one percent or more, by weight, or did drive
a motor vehicle while under the age of twenty-one years with an
alcohol concentration in his or her blood of two hundredths of one
percent or more, by weight, but less than ten hundredths of one
percent, by weight, and if the person does not act to appeal the
conviction or withdraw the plea of nolo contendere or no contest
within the time periods described in subsection (b) of this
section, the person's license to operate a motor vehicle in this
state shall be revoked or suspended in accordance with the
provisions of this section.
(b) The clerk of the court in which a person is convicted or pleads nolo contendere or no contest and the plea of nolo contendre
or no contest is accepted by a court with jurisdiction in the
matter for an offense described in section two, article five of
this chapter or for an offense described in a municipal ordinance
which has the same elements as an offense described in said section
two of article five, shall forward to the commissioner a transcript
of the judgment of conviction or a transcript of the adjudication
of the nolo contendre or no contest plea. If the conviction or an
adjudication of a plea of nolo contendere or no contest is the
judgment of a magistrate court, the magistrate court clerk shall
forward the transcript when the person convicted has not requested
an appeal or withdrawn a plea of nolo contendre or no contest
within twenty days of the sentencing for such conviction. If the
conviction or adjudication of a plea of nolo contendere or no
contest is the judgment of a mayor or police court judge or
municipal court judge, the clerk or recorder shall forward the
transcript when the person convicted has not perfected an appeal or
withdrawn a plea of nolo contendere or no contest within ten days
from and after the date upon which the sentence is imposed. If the
conviction or adjudication of a plea of nolo contendere or no
contest is the judgment of a circuit court, the circuit clerk shall
forward the transcript when the person convicted has not filed a
notice of intent to file a petition for appeal or withdrawn a plea
of nolo contendere or no contest or filed a writ of error within thirty days after the judgment was entered.
(c) If, upon examination of the transcript of the judgment of
conviction or adjudication of a plea of nolo contendere or no
contest the commissioner shall determine that the person was
convicted or entered a plea of nolo contendere or no contest to the
charge for an offense described in section two, article five of
this chapter or for an offense described in a municipal ordinance
which has the same elements as an offense described in said section
two of article five, because the person did drive a motor vehicle
while under the influence of alcohol, controlled substances or
drugs, or the combined influence of alcohol or controlled
substances or drugs, or did drive a motor vehicle while having an
alcoholic concentration in his or her blood of ten hundredths of
one percent or more, by weight, the commissioner shall make and
enter an order revoking the person's license to operate a motor
vehicle in this state. If the commissioner determines that the
person was convicted or entered a plea of nolo contendere or no
contest to the charge of driving a motor vehicle while under the
age of twenty-one years with an alcohol concentration in his or her
blood of two hundredths of one percent or more, by weight, but less
than ten hundredths of one percent, by weight, the commissioner
shall make and enter an order suspending the person's license to
operate a motor vehicle in this state. The order shall contain the
reasons for the revocation or suspension and the revocation or suspension periods provided in section two of this article.
Further, the order shall give the procedures for requesting a
hearing which is to be held in accordance with the provisions of
section two of this article. The person shall be advised in the
order that because of the receipt of a transcript of the judgment
of conviction or adjudication of a plea of nolo contendere or no
contest by the commissioner a presumption exists that the person
named in the transcript of the judgment of conviction is the person
named in the commissioner's order and such constitutes sufficient
evidence to support revocation or suspension and that the sole
purpose for the hearing held under this section is for the person
requesting the hearing to present evidence that he or she is not
the person named in the transcript. of the judgment of conviction
A copy of the order shall be forwarded to the person by registered
or certified mail, return receipt requested. No revocation or
suspension shall become effective until ten days after receipt of
a copy of the order.
(d) The provisions of this section shall do not apply if an
order reinstating the operator's license of the person has been
entered by the commissioner prior to the receipt of the transcript.
of the judgment of conviction
(e) For the purposes of this section: (1) A person is
convicted when the person enters a plea of guilty or is found
guilty by a court or jury; and (2) a person's plea of nolo contendere is adjudicated when his or her plea of nolo contendere
or no contest is accepted by a court with jurisdiction in the
matter and sentence is imposed.
NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to include a court accepted
plea of nolo contendere or no contest to a criminal charge of
driving under the influence of alcohol, controlled substances or
drugs as having the same effect as a conviction in administrative
license revocation proceedings.
Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken from
the present law, and underscoring indicates new language that would
be added.
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