H. B. 2393
(By Delegate Paxton)
[Introduced February 13, 2009; referred to the
Committee on the Judiciary then Finance.]
A BILL to amend and reenact §61-2-10b of the Code of West Virginia,
1931, as amended, relating to providing a mandatory sentence
of fifteen years for any person who maliciously shoots a
police officer on duty; and providing a mandatory sentence of
ten years for any person who unlawfully, but not maliciously,
shoots a police officer on duty.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That §61-2-10b
of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended,
be amended and reenacted to read as follows:
ARTICLE 2. CRIMES AGAINST THE PERSON.
§61-2-10b. Malicious assault; unlawful assault; battery and
recidivism of battery; assault on police officers,
conservation officers, probation officers, humane
officers, emergency medical service personnel,
firefighters, Fire Marshal, Division of Forestry
employees, county or state correctional employees,
Public Service Commission motor carrier inspector and enforcement officer and court security
personnel; penalties.
(a)
Malicious assault. -- Any person who maliciously shoots,
stabs, cuts or wounds or by any means causes bodily injury with
intent to maim, disfigure, disable or kill a police officer,
probation officer, conservation officer, humane officer, emergency
medical service personnel, health care worker, protective services
worker, firefighter, State Fire Marshal or employee, Division of
Forestry employee, county correctional employee or state
correctional employee, employee of an urban mass transportation
system, court security personnel or Public Service Commission motor
carrier inspector and enforcement officer acting in his or her
official capacity and the person committing the malicious assault
knows or has reason to know that the victim is acting in his or her
official capacity is guilty of a felony and, upon conviction
thereof, shall be confined in a correctional facility for not less
than three nor more than fifteen years.
Any person who commits a
malicious assault upon a police officer by shooting the officer
shall be confined in a correctional facility for fifteen years.
(b) Unlawful assault. -- Any person who unlawfully but not
maliciously shoots, stabs, cuts or wounds or by any means causes a
police officer, probation officer, conservation officer, humane
officer, emergency medical service personnel, health care worker,
protective services worker, firefighter, State Fire Marshal or
employee, Division of Forestry employee, county correctional
employee or state correctional employee, employee of an urban mass transportation system, court security personnel or Public Service
Commission motor carrier inspector and enforcement officer acting
in his or her official capacity bodily injury with intent to maim,
disfigure, disable or kill him or her and the person committing the
unlawful assault knows or has reason to know that the victim is
acting in his or her official capacity is guilty of a felony and,
upon conviction thereof, shall be confined in a correctional
facility for not less than two nor more than five years.
Any
person who commits an unlawful assault upon a police officer by
shooting the officer shall be confined in a correctional facility
for ten years.
(c) Battery. -- Any person who unlawfully, knowingly and
intentionally makes physical contact of an insulting or provoking
nature with a police officer, probation officer, conservation
officer, humane officer, emergency medical service personnel,
health care worker, protective services worker, firefighter, State
Fire Marshal or employee, Division of Forestry employee, county
correctional employee, state correctional employee, employee of an
urban mass transportation system, court security personnel or
Public Service Commission motor carrier inspector and enforcement
officer acting in his or her official capacity, or unlawfully and
intentionally causes physical harm to that person acting in such
capacity, is guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction thereof,
shall be confined in jail for not less than one month nor more than
twelve months, fined the sum of $500, or both. If any person
commits a second such offense, he or she is guilty of a felony and, upon conviction thereof, shall be confined in a correctional
facility for not less than one year nor more than three years or
fined the sum of $1,000 or both fined and confined. Any person who
commits a third violation of this subsection is guilty of a felony
and, upon conviction thereof, shall be confined in a correctional
facility not less than two years nor more than five years or fined
not more than $2,000 or both fined and confined.
(d) Assault. -- Any person who unlawfully attempts to commit
a violent injury to the person of a police officer, probation
officer, conservation officer, humane officer, emergency medical
service personnel, health care worker, protective services worker,
firefighter, State Fire Marshal or employee, Division of Forestry
employee, county correctional employee, state correctional
employee, employee of an urban mass transportation system, court
security personnel or Public Service Commission motor carrier
inspector and enforcement officer acting in his or her official
capacity, or unlawfully commits an act which places that person
acting in his or her official capacity in reasonable apprehension
of immediately receiving a violent injury, is guilty of a
misdemeanor and, upon conviction thereof, shall be confined in jail
for not less than twenty-four hours nor more than six months, fined
not more than $200, or both fined and confined.
(e) For purposes of this section:
(1) "Court security personnel" means any person employed by a
circuit court, family court, magistrate court, county commission,
sheriff, the state or other political subdivision to operate and maintain security devices, including, but not limited to, a metal
detector, X-ray machine, video monitoring equipment and/or other
security devices, prevent or detect crime, enforce the laws of this
state or otherwise provide court security.
(2) "Division of Forestry employee" means an officer, agent,
employee or servant, whether full time or not, of the Division of
Forestry.
(3) "Employee of an urban mass transportation system" means
any person employed by an urban mass transportation system as such
is defined in section three, article twenty-seven, chapter eight of
this code or by a system that receives federal transit
administration funding under 49 U.S.C. §5307 or §5311.
(4) "Health care worker" means any nurse, nurse practitioner,
physician, physician assistant or technician practicing at, and all
persons employed by, a hospital, county or district health
department, long-term care facility, physician's office, clinic or
outpatient treatment facility.
(5) "Police officer" means any person employed by the State
Police, any person employed by the state to perform law-enforcement
duties, any person employed by a political subdivision of this
state who is responsible for the prevention or detection of crime
and the enforcement of the penal, traffic or highway laws of this
state or employed as a special police officer as defined in section
forty-one, article three of this chapter.
(6) "Protective services worker" means an employee of the
Department of Health and Human Resources employed as, or a person contracted with the Department of Health and Human Resources as, a
child or adult protective services worker.
(7) "Public Service Commission motor carrier inspector and
enforcement officer" means an officer, agent or employee of the
Public Service Commission charged with the enforcement of
commercial motor vehicle safety and weight restriction laws of the
State of West Virginia.
NOTE:
The purpose of this bill is to provide a mandatory
sentence of fifteen years for any person who maliciously shoots a
police officer on duty, while providing a mandatory sentence of ten
years for any person who unlawfully, but not maliciously, shoots a
police officer on duty.
Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken from
the present law, and underscoring indicates new language that would
be added.