H. B. 2702
(By Delegate Beane)
[Introduced February 24, 1995; referred to the
Committee on the Judiciary.]
A BILL to amend and reenact section seventeen, article five,
chapter sixty-one of the code of West Virginia, one thousand
nine hundred thirty-one, as amended, relating to providing
that fleeing from a law-enforcement officer after committing
a felony is a felony; that fleeing from a law-enforcement
officer after committing a misdemeanor is a misdemeanor; and
providing for penalties.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That section seventeen, article five, chapter sixty-one of
the code of West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one,
as amended, be amended and reenacted to read as follows:
ARTICLE 5. CRIMES AGAINST PUBLIC JUSTICE.
§61-5-17. Obstructing officer; fleeing from officer; penalty.
(a) Any person who by threats, menaces, acts or otherwise,
shall forcibly or illegally hinder, obstruct, or oppose, or
attempt to obstruct or oppose, or shall counsel, advise or invite
others to hinder, obstruct or oppose any officer in this state
(whether civil or military) in the lawful exercise or discharge
of his official duty, shall, for every such offense, be guilty of
a misdemeanor, and, upon conviction thereof, shall be fined not
less than fifty nor more than five hundred dollars, and may, in
the discretion of the court, be imprisoned not exceeding one
year.
(b) If any person, after having committed a felony, flees or
attempts to flee from a law enforcement officer (whether civil or
military) lawfully attempting to apprehend the person for having
committed the felony, he or she shall be guilty of a felony, and,
upon conviction thereof, shall be fined not less than five
hundred nor more than one thousand dollars, and shall be confined
in the penitentiary not less than one nor more than five years.
If any person, after having committed a misdemeanor, shall flee or attempt to flee from a law enforcement officer (whether civil
or military) lawfully attempting to apprehend the person for
having committed the misdemeanor, he or she shall be guilty of a
misdemeanor, and, upon conviction thereof, shall be fined not
less than fifty nor more than five hundred dollars, and may, in
the discretion of the court, be imprisoned not exceeding one
year.
NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to provide that anyone
fleeing from a law enforcement officer, after committing a
felony, is guilty of a felony and anyone fleeing from a law
enforcement officer after committing a misdemeanor is guilty of
a misdemeanor.
Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken
from the present law, and underscoring indicates new language
that would be added.
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