HOUSE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION NO. 12

(By Delegates Givens, Douglas, Facemyer,

Fleischauer, Mezzatesta, Staton and Trump)



Requesting the Joint Committee on Government and Finance to conduct a study of the need for a consistent and comprehensive juvenile criminal history record system.

Whereas, It is the responsibility of the State of West Virginia to provide for a comprehensive system of care, treatment and rehabilitation of its juveniles who are charged with or adjudicated of crimes and misdemeanors; and
Whereas, The records of juveniles, including fingerprints, come into the custody of numerous departments, divisions and institutions within the state during and after the course of criminal proceedings; and
Whereas, The laws of the State of West Virginia do not consistently and precisely define what constitutes juvenile criminal history records, and the purposes for which various records may be used; and
Whereas, The Legislature needs accurate information regarding the need for database systems to store and retrieve juvenile criminal history records, and the storage capacity of the various entities which are charged with safeguarding juvenile criminal history records; therefore, be it
Resolved by the Legislature of West Virginia:

That the Joint Committee on Government and Finance is hereby requested to study the need for a juvenile criminal history record system, with specific emphasis on the following areas of inquiry:
(a) The purposes for which juvenile criminal history records, including fingerprints, should be available; and
(b) How state laws correspond to current database system capabilities and storage space capacity; and
(c) Whether current law adequately protects the rights of juveniles in the permitted use of juvenile criminal history records; and, be it
Further Resolved, That the Joint Committee on Government and Finance report to the regular session of the Legislature, 2001, on its findings, conclusions and recommendations, together with drafts of any legislation necessary to effectuate its recommendations; and, be it
Further Resolved, That the expenses necessary to conduct this study, to prepare a report and to draft necessary legislation be paid from legislative appropriations to the Joint Committee on Government and Finance.


This resolution is recommended for passage in the 2000 Regular Session of the Legislature by the Legislative Task Force on Juvenile Foster Care, Detention and Placement.