ENROLLED
COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE
FOR
H. B. 2362
(By Delegate Boggs, Perdue, Ashley and Barker)
[Passed March 12, 2011; in effect ninety days from passage.]
AN ACT to amend and reenact §61-2-29b of the Code of West Virginia,
1931, as amended, relating to crimes against the elderly,
protected persons or incapacitated persons; financial
exploitation of the elderly, protected persons and
incapacitated adults for misappropriating or misusing assets;
permitting the prosecutor to cumulate amounts or values when
charging; permitting banking institutions and others to report
suspected financial exploitation to law-enforcement
authorities and other entities; permitting financial
institutions to disclose suspicious activity reports or
currency transaction reports to the prosecuting attorney;
providing civil immunity for reporting; ordering restitution;
and establishing the criminal penalty of larceny.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That §61-2-29b of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended,
be amended and reenacted to read as follows:
ARTICLE 2. CRIMES AGAINST THE PERSON.
§61-2-29b. Financial exploitation of an elderly person, protected
person or incapacitated adult; penalties;
definitions.
(a)
Financial exploitation occurs when a person intentionally
misappropriates or misuses the funds or assets of an elderly
person, protected person or incapacitated adult. Any person who
violates this section is guilty of larceny and shall be ordered to
pay restitution.
(b) In determining the value of the money, goods, property or
services referred to in subsection (a) of the section, it shall be
permissible to cumulate amounts or values where such money, goods,
property or services were fraudulently obtained as part of a common
scheme or plan.
(c) Financial institutions and their employees, as defined by
section one, article two-a, chapter thirty-one-a of this code and
as permitted by section four, subsection thirteen of that article,
others engaged in financially related activities as defined by
section one, article eight-c, chapter thirty-one-a of this code,
caregivers, relatives and other concerned persons are permitted to
report suspected cases of financial exploitation to state or
federal law enforcement authorities, the county prosecuting
attorney and to the Department of Health and Human Resources, Adult
Protective Services Division or Medicaid Fraud Division, as appropriate. Public officers and employees are required to report
suspected cases of financial exploitation to the appropriate
entities as stated above. The requisite agencies shall investigate
or cause the investigation of the allegations.
(d) When financial exploitation is suspected and to the extent
permitted by federal law, financial institutions and their
employees or other business entities required by federal law or
regulation to file suspicious activity reports and currency
transaction reports shall also be permitted to disclose suspicious
activity reports or currency transaction reports to the prosecuting
attorney of any county in which the transactions underlying the
suspicious activity reports or currency transaction reports
occurred.
(e) Any person or entity that in good faith reports a
suspected case of financial exploitation pursuant to this section
is immune from civil liability founded upon making that report.
(f) For the purposes of this section:
(1) "Incapacitated adult" means a person as defined by section
twenty-nine of this article;
(2) "Elderly person" means a person who is sixty-five years
or older; and
(3) "Protected person" means any person who is defined as a
"protected person" in subsection thirteen, section four, article
one, chapter forty-four-a of this code and who is subject to the protections of chapter forty-four-a or forty-four-c of this code.
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