H. B. 4029
(By Delegates Frich, Tansill, Stevens,
Carmichael and Hamilton)
[Introduced January 17,2006; referred to the
Committee on the Judiciary then Finance.]
A BILL to amend and reenact §15-12-2 of the Code of West Virginia,
1931, as amended, relating to requiring additional
registration information from violent sexual predators;
requiring that sex offenders agree to wear global positioning
monitors when released on probation, parole or to community
programs; requiring violent sexual predators to wear global
positioning monitors in order to be released from confinement
or commitment; and providing that the West Virginia State
Police shall establish a global positioning monitoring system
for registered sex offenders.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That §15-12-2 of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended,
be amended and reenacted to read as follows:
ARTICLE 12. SEX OFFENDER REGISTRATION ACT.
§15-12-2. Registration.
(a) The provisions of this article apply both retroactively
and prospectively.
(b) Any person who has been convicted of an offense or an
attempted offense or has been found not guilty by reason of mental
illness, mental retardation or addiction of an offense under any of
the following provisions of chapter sixty-one of this code or under
a statutory provision of another state, the United States code or
the uniform code of military justice which requires proof of the
same essential elements shall register as set forth in subsection
(d) of this section and according to the internal management rules
promulgated by the superintendent under authority of section
twenty-five, article two of this chapter:
(1) Article eight-b, including the provisions of former
section six of said article, relating to the offense of sexual
assault of a spouse, which was repealed by an Act of the
Legislature during the year two thousand legislative session;
(2) Article eight-c;
(3) Sections five and six, article eight-d;
(4) Section fourteen, article two; or
(5) Sections six, seven, twelve and thirteen, article eight.
(c) Any person who has been convicted of a criminal offense
and the sentencing judge made a written finding that the offense
was sexually motivated shall also register as set forth in this
article.
(d) Persons required to register under the provisions of this
article shall provide or cooperate in providing, at a minimum, the
following when registering:
(1) The full name of the registrant, including any aliases,
nicknames or other names used by the registrant;
(2) The address where the registrant intends to reside or
resides at the time of registration, the name and address of the
registrant's employer or place of occupation at the time of
registration, the names and addresses of any anticipated future
employers or places of occupation, the name and address of any
school or training facility the registrant is attending at the time
of registration and the names and addresses of any schools or
training facilities the registrant expects to attend;
(3) The registrant's social security number;
(4) A full-face photograph of the registrant at the time of
registration;
(5) A brief description of the crime or crimes for which the
registrant was convicted;
(6) Fingerprints;
(7) Information related to any motor vehicle owned or
regularly operated by a registrant; and
(8) Information relating to any internet accounts the
registrant has and the screen names, user names or aliases the
registrant uses on the internet.
(e) On the date that any person convicted or found not guilty
by reason of mental illness, mental retardation or addiction of any
of the crimes listed in subsection (b) of this section, hereinafter
referred to as a "qualifying offense", including those persons who
are continuing under some post-conviction supervisory status, are
released, granted probation or a suspended sentence, released on
parole, probation, home detention, work release, conditional
release or any other release from confinement, the commissioner of
corrections, regional jail administrator, city or sheriff operating
a jail or Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Resources
which releases the person, and any parole or probation officer who
releases the person or supervises the person following the release,
shall obtain all information required by subsection (d) of this
section prior to the release of the person, inform the person of
his or her duty to register and send written notice of the release
of the person to the State Police within three business days of
receiving the information. The notice must include the information
required by said subsection. Any person having a duty to register
for a qualifying offense shall register upon conviction, unless
that person is confined or incarcerated, in which case he or she
shall register within three business days of release, transfer or
other change in disposition status.
(f) For any
person determined to be a sexually violent
predator, the notice required by subsection (d) of this section must also include:
(1) Identifying factors, including physical characteristics;
(2) History of the offense; and
(3) Documentation of any treatment received for the mental
abnormality or personality disorder.
(g) A sexually violent predator must report in person each year
during the month of the sexually violent predator's birthday and
during the sixth month following the sexually violent predator's
birth month to the nearest State Police office of the county in
which he or she resides or is otherwise located to reregister. The
State Police office may determine the appropriate times and days for
reporting by the sexually violent predator, which shall be
consistent with the reporting requirements of this paragraph.
(h) Reregistration shall include any changes to the following
information:
(1) Name; social security number; age; race; sex; date of
birth; height; weight; hair and eye color; address of any permanent
residence and address of any current temporary residence, within the
state or out-of-state, including a rural route address and a
post-office box; date and place of any employment; vehicle make,
model, color, and license tag number; fingerprints; and photograph.
A post-office box may not be provided in lieu of a physical
residential address;
(2) If the sexually violent predator is enrolled, employed, or carrying on a vocation at an institution of higher education in
this state, the sexually violent predator shall also provide to the
department the name, address, and county of each institution,
including each campus attended, and the sexually violent predator's
enrollment or employment status; and
(3) If the sexually violent predator's place of residence is
a motor vehicle, trailer, mobile home, or manufactured home, the
sexually violent predator shall also provide the vehicle
identification number; the license tag number; the registration
number; and a description, including color scheme, of the motor
vehicle, trailer, mobile home, or manufactured home. If the
sexually violent predator's place of residence is a vessel,
live-aboard vessel, or houseboat, the sexually violent predator
shall also provide the hull identification number; the
manufacturer's serial number; the name of the vessel, live-aboard
vessel, or houseboat; the registration number; and a description,
including color scheme, of the vessel, live-aboard vessel, or
houseboat.
(i) The State Police office shall, within two business days,
electronically submit all information provided by the sexually
violent predator to the department in a manner prescribed by the
department.
(g) (j) At the time the person is convicted or found not guilty
by reason of mental illness, mental retardation or addiction in a court of this state of the crimes set forth in subsection (b) of
this section, the person shall sign in open court a statement
acknowledging that he or she understands the requirements imposed
by this article. The court shall inform the person so convicted of
the requirements to register imposed by this article and shall
further satisfy itself by interrogation of the defendant or his or
her counsel that the defendant has received notice of the provisions
of this article and that the defendant understands the provisions.
The statement, when signed and witnessed, constitutes prima facie
evidence that the person had knowledge of the requirements of this
article. Upon completion of the statement, the court shall provide
a copy to the registry. Persons who have not signed a statement
under the provisions of this subsection and who are subject to the
registration requirements of this article must be informed of the
requirement by the State Police whenever the State Police obtain
information that the person is subject to registration requirements.
A sexually violent predator must maintain registration with the
State Police for the duration of his or her life, unless the
sexually violent predator has received a full pardon or has had a
conviction set aside in a post-conviction proceeding for any offense
that met the criteria for the sexually violent predator designation.
(h) (k) The State Police shall maintain a central registry of
all persons who register under this article and shall release
information only as provided in this article. The information required to be made public by the State Police by subdivision (2),
subsection (b), section five of this article is to be accessible
through the internet. No information relating to internet accounts,
screen names, user names or aliases a registrant has or uses may be
released through the internet.
(i) (l) For the purpose of this article, "sexually violent
offense" means:
(1) Sexual assault in the first degree as set forth in section
three, article eight-b, chapter sixty-one of this code or of a
similar provision in another state, federal or military
jurisdiction;
(2) Sexual assault in the second degree as set forth in section
four, article eight-b, chapter sixty-one of this code or of a
similar provision in another state, federal or military
jurisdiction;
(3) Sexual assault of a spouse as set forth in the former
provisions of section six, article eight-b, chapter sixty-one of
this code, which was repealed by an Act of the Legislature during
the two thousand legislative session, or of a similar provision in
another state, federal or military jurisdiction;
(4) Sexual abuse in the first degree as set forth in section
seven, article eight-b, chapter sixty-one of this code or of a
similar provision in another state, federal or military
jurisdiction.
(j) (m) For purposes of this article, the term "sexually
motivated" means that one of the purposes for which a person
committed the crime was for any person's sexual gratification.
(k) (n) For purposes of this article, the term "sexually
violent predator" means a person who has been convicted or found not
guilty by reason of mental illness, mental retardation or addiction
of a sexually violent offense and who suffers from a mental
abnormality or personality disorder that makes the person likely to
engage in predatory sexually violent offenses.
(l) (o) For purposes of this article, the term "mental
abnormality" means a congenital or acquired condition of a person
that affects the emotional or volitional capacity of the person in
a manner that predisposes that person to the commission of criminal
sexual acts to a degree that makes the person a menace to the health
and safety of other persons.
(m) (p) For purposes of this article, the term "predatory act"
means an act directed at a stranger or at a person with whom a
relationship has been established or promoted for the primary
purpose of victimization.
(n) (q) For the purposes of this article, the term "business
days", means days exclusive of Saturdays, Sundays and legal holidays
as defined in section one, article two, chapter two of this code.
Notwithstanding any other provision of this code to the
contrary, no person who would be required to register as a sex offender under the provisions of this article after serving his or
her sentence of confinement or commitment, may be released on
parole, probation, or to any community program before the expiration
of their sentence or commitment unless he or she agrees to wear a
global positioning monitor which is monitored by the West Virginia
State Police using a global positioning system and no person
determined to be a sexually violent predator may be released from
confinement or commitment unless he or she agrees to wear a global
positioning monitor which is monitored by the West Virginia State
Police using a global positioning system for his or her lifetime
while in the community to insure the security, safety and peace of
mind of the citizens of the state.
From funds appropriated therefor, the State Police shall
establish a sex offender global monitoring system and provide for
its operation and maintenance no later than the effective date of
this section.
NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to require additional
registration information from violent sexual predators and require
that sex offenders agree to wear global positioning monitors when
released on probation, parole or to community programs. Under the
bill, violent sexual predators are required to wear global
positioning monitors for life in order to be released from
confinement or commitment. The West Virginia State Police is
required to establish a global positioning monitoring system for
registered sex offenders.
Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken from
the present law, and underscoring indicates new language that would
be added.