H. B. 4571
(By Delegates Miley, Cann, Fragale and Iaquinta)
[Introduced February 15, 2006; referred to the
Committee on the Judiciary.]
A BILL to amend and reenact §7-4-1 of the Code of West Virginia,
1931, as amended, relating to requiring prosecutors or
assistant prosecutors that desire to carry a concealed weapon
to undergo annual training consistent with the Federal
Law-Enforcement Safety Act.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That §7-4-1 of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, be
amended and reenacted to read as follows:
ARTICLE 4. PROSECUTING ATTORNEY, REWARDS AND LEGAL ADVICE.
§7-4-1. Duties of prosecuting attorney; further duties upon
request of Attorney General.
It shall be the duty of the prosecuting attorney to attend to
the criminal business of the state in the county in which he
or she
is elected and qualified, and when he
or she has information of the
violation of any penal law committed within such county, he
or she
shall institute and prosecute all necessary and proper proceedings
against the offender, and may in such case issue or cause to be issued a summons for any witness he
or she may deem material.
Every public officer shall give him
or her information of the
violation of any penal law committed within his
or her county. It
shall also be the duty of the prosecuting attorney to attend to
civil suits in such county in which the state, or any department,
commission or board thereof, is interested, and to advise, attend
to, bring, prosecute or defend, as the case may be, all matters,
actions, suits and proceedings in which such county or any county
board of education is interested.
A prosecutor or assistant prosecutor desiring to carry a
concealed weapon, pursuant to this section or article seven,
chapter sixty-one of this code, shall undergo training, at least
annually, established by the sheriff's department of their county,
similar to that which is provided to deputy sheriffs or process
servers in accordance with subsection-b, section fourteen, article
one, chapter fifty of this code. Upon completion of the annual
training, each such prosecutor or assistant prosecutor shall be
issued a certification indicating completion of the annual training
consistent with this section and the Federal Law-enforcement Safety
Act. Such prosecutors or their assistants shall be authorized to
carry a concealed weapon and have all the rights and authorities
necessary in order to comply with the Federal Law-Enforcement
Safety Act.
It shall be the duty of the prosecuting attorney to keep his
or her office open in the charge of a responsible person during the
hours polls are open on general, primary and special county-wide election days, and the prosecuting attorney, or his
or her
assistant, if any, shall be available for the purpose of advising
election officials. It shall be the further duty of the
prosecuting attorney, when requested by the Attorney General, to
perform or to assist the Attorney General in performing, in the
county in which he
or she is elected, any legal duties required to
be performed by the Attorney General, and which are not
inconsistent with the duties of the prosecuting attorney as the
legal representative of such county. It shall also be the duty of
the prosecuting attorney, when requested by the Attorney General,
to perform or to assist the Attorney General in performing, any
legal duties required to be performed by the Attorney General, in
any county other than that in which such prosecuting attorney is
elected, and for the performance of any such duties in any county
other than that in which such prosecuting attorney is elected he
or
she shall be paid his
or her actual expenses.
Upon the request of the Attorney General the prosecuting
attorney shall make a written report of the state and condition of
the several causes in which the state is a party, pending in his
or her county, and upon any matters referred to him
or her by the
Attorney General as provided by law.
NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to require prosecutors or
assistant prosecutors that desire to carry a concealed weapon to
undergo annual training consistent with the Federal Law-Enforcement
Safety Act.
Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken from
the present law, and underscoring indicates new language that would
be added.