WEST virginia legislature

2019 regular session

Introduced

Senate Joint Resolution 5

By Senators Trump and Boso

[Introduced January 9, 2019; Referred
to the Committee on the Judiciary; and then to the Committee on Finance]

Proposing an amendment to the Constitution of the State of West Virginia, amending section nine, article IV thereof, relating to the impeachment of officials; providing that courts have no authority or jurisdiction to intercede in or interfere with impeachment proceedings of the House of Delegates or the Senate; specifying that a judgment rendered by the Senate following an impeachment trial is not reviewable in any court of this state; numbering and designating such proposed amendment; and providing a summarized statement of the purpose of such proposed amendment.

Resolved by the Legislature of West Virginia, two thirds of the members elected to each house agreeing thereto:

That the question of ratification or rejection of an amendment to the Constitution of the State of West Virginia be submitted to the voters of the state at the next general election to be held in the year 2020, which proposed amendment is that section nine, article IV thereof, be amended to read as follows:

ARTICLE IV.

§9.  Impeachment of officials.

Any officer of the state may be impeached for maladministration, corruption, incompetency, gross immorality, neglect of duty, or any high crime or misdemeanor.  The House of Delegates shall have the sole power of impeachment.  The Senate shall have the sole power to try impeachments and no person shall be convicted without the concurrence of two thirds of the members elected thereto.  When sitting as a court of impeachment, the president of the supreme court of appeals, or, if from any cause it be improper for him to act, then any other judge of that court, to be designated by it, shall preside; and the senators shall be on oath or affirmation, to do justice according to law and evidence.  Judgment in cases of impeachment shall not extend further than to removal from office, and disqualification to hold any office of honor, trust or profit, under the state; but the party convicted shall be liable to indictment, trial, judgment, and punishment according to law.  The Senate may sit during the recess of the Legislature for the trial of impeachments. No court of this state shall have any authority or jurisdiction, by writ or otherwise, to intercede in or interfere with any proceedings of the House of Delegates or the Senate hereunder; nor shall any judgment rendered by the Senate following an impeachment trial be reviewable in any court of this state.

Resolved further, That in accordance with the provisions of article eleven, chapter three of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, such amendment is hereby numbered “Amendment No. 1” and designated as the “Clarification of the Judiciary’s Role in Impeachment Proceedings Amendment” and the purpose of the proposed amendment is summarized as follows:  “Clarifying that courts have no authority or jurisdiction to intercede in or interfere with impeachment proceedings of the House of Delegates or the Senate; and specifying that a judgment rendered by the Senate following an impeachment trial is not reviewable in any court of this state.“

 

NOTE: The purpose of this resolution is to clarify that courts have no authority or jurisdiction to intercede in or interfere with impeachment proceedings of the House of Delegates or the Senate and that a judgment rendered by the Senate following an impeachment trial is not reviewable in any court of this state.

Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken from a heading or the present law and underscoring indicates new language that would be added.