2026 REGULAR SESSION

Introduced

Senate Bill 920

By Senator Charnock

[Introduced February 11, 2026; referred
to the Committee on the Judiciary; and then to the Committee on Finance]

A BILL to amend the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, by adding a new section, designated §61-2-2a, relating to making a first-degree murder of a minor conviction with a firearm punishable by life imprisonment without mercy.

Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:

ARTICLE 2. CRIMES AGAINST THE PERSON.

§61-2-2a. Koda’s Law.

Murder of the first degree of a minor involving a firearm shall be punished by confinement in the penitentiary for life without the possibility of mercy.

NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to make a first-degree murder of a minor conviction with a firearm punishable by life imprisonment without mercy.

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