H. B. 2311
(By Delegates Manuel, Collins, Overington, Whitman,
Ellis, Warner and Walters)
[Introduced February 1, 1995; referred to the
Committee on the Judiciary.]
A BILL to amend and reenact section four, article seven, chapter
sixty-one of the code of West Virginia, one thousand nine
hundred thirty-one, as amended, relating to procedures for
licensing persons to carry any dangerous weapons;
authorizing sheriffs to issue licenses, rather than circuit
judges; and providing that funds collected under this
section be deposited in the county general fund.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That section four, article seven, 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 7. DANGEROUS WEAPONS.
§61-7-4. License to carry deadly weapons; how obtained.
(a) Any person desiring to obtain a state license to carry
a concealed deadly weapon shall apply to the
circuit court
sheriff of his or her county for such license, and shall pay to
the
clerk of the circuit court sheriff, at the time of
application, a filing fee of twenty dollars. The applicant shall
file with the
clerk of the circuit court sheriff an application
in writing, duly verified, which sets forth the following:
(1) That the applicant is a citizen of the United States of
America or lawfully resides in the United States of America;
(2) That, on the date the application is made, the applicant
is a bona fide resident of this state and of the county in which
the application is made;
(3) That the applicant is eighteen years of age or older;
(4) That the applicant is not addicted to alcohol, a
controlled substance or a drug, and is not an unlawful user
thereof;
(5) That the applicant has not been convicted of a felony or
of an act of violence involving the misuse of such deadly weapon;
(6) That the applicant is not under indictment for a felony nor has he or she been adjudicated to be mentally incompetent;
(6) (7) That the applicant desires to carry such deadly
weapon for the defense of self, family, home or state, or other
lawful purpose;
(7) That the applicant is physically and mentally competent
to carry such weapon;
(8) That in the case of a person applying for a license to
carry a concealed pistol or revolver, the applicant is physically
and mentally competent to carry such deadly weapon;
(8) (9) That, in the case of a person applying for a license
to carry a concealed pistol or revolver, the applicant has
qualified under minimum requirements
set forth in subsection (b)
of this section for handling and firing such firearms:
These
minimum requirements are those promulgated by the department of
natural resources and attained under the auspices of the
department of natural resources Provided, That the court shall
waive this requirement in the case of a renewal applicant who has
previously qualified;
Provided, however, That the following may
be substituted for those minimum requirements promulgated by the
department of natural resources:
(10) That the applicant authorizes the sheriff of the
county, or his or her designee, to conduct an investigation
relative only to that information contained in the application
and the sheriff is hereby required to conduct such investigation
which shall verify that the information set forth in the
application is true and correct.
(b) The minimum requirements for handling and firing a
revolver or pistol are:
(A) (1) Successful completion of any official national rifle
association firearms safety or training course;
(B) (2) Successful completion of any firearms safety or
training course or class available to the general public offered
by an official law-enforcement organization, community college,
junior college, college, or private or public institution or
organization or firearms training school, utilizing instructors
currently certified by the national rifle association;
(C) (3) Successful completion of any firearms training or
safety course or class conducted by a firearms instructor
certified as such by the state or by the national rifle
association;
or
(4) Successful completion of any handgun training or safety
course or class conducted by any branch of the United States
military.
A photocopy of a certificate of completion of any of the
courses or classes or an affidavit from the instructor, school,
club, organization, or group that conducted or taught said course
or class attesting to the successful completion of the course or
class by the applicant or a copy of any document which shows
successful completion of the course or class, shall constitute
evidence of qualification under this section.
(b) (c) The
court sheriff shall issue or deny such license
within thirty days after the application is filed
with the
circuit clerk. The court shall, if necessary, hear evidence upon
all matters stated in such application and upon any other matter
related to the eligibility of the applicant under subsection (a)
of this section. if
from such application or the proof it
appears that the purpose for such person to carry such weapon is
defense of self, family, home or state, or other lawful purpose,
and
all other conditions in subsection (a) are complied with, the
court, or the judge thereof in vacation, shall grant if the information in the application is found to be true and correct,
the sheriff shall issue such license.
(d) If an application is approved, the
court sheriff shall
require in its order granting the license that before any license
shall be issued or become effective, the applicant shall pay to
the sheriff a license fee in the amount of fifty dollars
upon
issuance of such license. Any such license shall be valid for
five years, unless sooner revoked.
(e) All license fees collected hereunder shall be paid by
the sheriff and accounted for to the auditor as other license
taxes are collected and paid, and the state tax commissioner
shall prepare all suitable forms for licenses and certificates
showing that such license has been granted and shall do any other
act required to be done to protect the state and see to the
enforcement of this section.
(e) In the event an application is denied, the specific
reasons for the denial shall be stated by the sheriff denying the
application. Any person denied a license by a sheriff may file,
in the circuit court of the county in which the application was
made, a petition seeking review of the denial. Such petition shall be filed within thirty days of the denial. The court shall
determine whether the sheriff's action in denying the issuance of
a license is supported by a preponderance of the evidence. The
applicant may be represented by counsel, but in no case shall the
court be required to appoint counsel for an applicant. The final
order of the court shall include the court's findings of fact and
conclusions of law. If the final order upholds the denial, the
applicant may file an appeal in accordance with the rules of
appellate procedure of the supreme court of appeals.
(f) In the event a license is lost or destroyed, the person
to whom the license was issued may obtain a duplicate or
substitute license for a fee of ten dollars by filing a notarized
statement with the sheriff indicating that the license has been
lost or destroyed.
(f) (g) The
clerk of the circuit court sheriff shall,
immediately after the license is granted as aforesaid, furnish
the superintendent of the
department division of public safety a
certified copy of the order of the court granting such license,
for which service the clerk shall be paid a fee of two dollars.
which shall be taxed as costs in the proceeding It shall be the duty of the
clerk of each circuit court sheriff to furnish to the
superintendent of the
department division of public safety, at
any time so requested, a certified list of all such licenses
issued in the county.
(g) (h) No person who is engaged in the receipt, review, or
in the issuance of such license shall incur any civil liability
as the result of the lawful performance of his or her duties
under this article.
NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to authorize county
sheriffs to pass on the issuance of license to carry deadly
weapons rather than judges of the circuit court; and it provides
that funds collected under this section be deposited in the
county general fund.
Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken
from the present law, and underscoring indicates new language
that would be added.