Introduced Version
Senate Bill 47 History
OTHER VERSIONS -
Committee Substitute (1)
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Key: Green = existing Code. Red = new code to be enacted
Senate Bill No. 47
(By Senators Williams, Miller, Sypolt and Beach)
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[Introduced February 13, 2013; referred to the Committee on
Agriculture and Rural Development; and then to the Committee on
the Judiciary.]
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A BILL to repeal §19-18-4, §19-18-5, §19-18-6, §19-18-7, §19-18-8,
§19-18-9, §19-18-10, §19-18-11 and §19-18-12 of the Code of
West Virginia, 1931, as amended; and to amend and reenact
§19-18-1, §19-18-2 and §19-18-3 of said code, all relating to
providing a general livestock trespass law; prohibiting
livestock from trespassing; clarifying damages that may be
recovered; permitting containment of livestock; requiring
owner of trespassing livestock be notified; requiring
containment costs be negotiated; permitting containment costs
to be recovered in court; permitting the sheriff to take
possession of unclaimed livestock; permitting unclaimed
livestock be sold at auction; setting forth how the proceeds
of a livestock sale shall be distributed; and establishing
misdemeanor penalties.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That §19-18-4, §19-18-5, §19-18-6, §19-18-7, §19-18-8,
§19-18-9, §19-18-10, §19-18-11 and §19-18-12 of the Code of West
Virginia, 1931, as amended, be repealed; and that §19-18-1,
§19-18-2 and §19-18-3 of said code be amended and reenacted, all to
read as follows:
ARTICLE 18. GENERAL LIVESTOCK TRESPASS LAW.
§19-18-1. Livestock trespassing on property of another; damages
for injuries to person or property; notice to
livestock owner; containment of livestock; costs for
containment.
(a) If livestock enters the property of another landowner
without that landowner's consent, the owner or manager of the
livestock is liable for damages for personal injury or property
loss in a civil action in magistrate or circuit court.
(b) The affected landowner must attempt to contact the owner
or manager of the trespassing livestock within forty-eight hours of
the trespass. If the owner or manager cannot be contacted within
forty-eight hours, the landowner shall notify the county sheriff.
(c) The landowner may contain the trespassing livestock on
his or her property, but is not required to do so. If the
landowner is able to contact the owner or manager of the
trespassing livestock pursuant to subsection (a) of this section, he or she shall also inform the owner or manager of the costs of
containment.
(d) The owner or manager of the trespassing livestock and the
landowner shall attempt to mutually agree on a fair cost for any
containment. A fair cost for containment is an amount which would
be allowed for the sheriff for containing similar livestock
. If
the negotiation fails, or i
f
the landowner is not otherwise
reimbursed for the costs for containment, the landowner may seek
monetary damages in a civil action for these costs.
§19-18-2. Unclaimed livestock; containment by sheriff; sheriff's
sale at public auction.
(a) If the owner or manager of trespassing livestock cannot be
determined, or if the trespassing livestock has not been recovered
within ten days of notifying the owner or manager, the county
sheriff shall take possession of the trespassing livestock.
(b) The county sheriff may return the livestock to its owner
or manager and seek reimbursement for containment costs. If
attempts to return the livestock to the owner or manager fail the
sheriff may, after publishing notice as a Class I legal
advertisement, sell the livestock to the highest bidder at a public
livestock auction.
(c) The proceeds of the livestock sale shall be distributed in
the following order:
(1) Costs incident to the sale;
(2) Costs of containment by the sheriff and the landowner;
(3) Any remaining amount to the owner of the trespassing
livestock; and
(4) If the owner is unknown or does not claim the amount
remaining within ninety days, that amount shall be deposited into
the county treasury.
§19-18-3. Criminal penalties for trespassing livestock;
restitution.
(a) While livestock may escape enclosures due to accident or
unforeseen circumstances, it is unlawful for the owner or manager
of livestock to negligently permit livestock to run at large and
trespass on the property of other landowners.
(b) If livestock injures a person or destroys the property of
another person while negligently trespassing, the owner or manager
of the livestock shall be given an oral or written warning for the
first offense. For a second offense within six months of the
first, the owner or manager is guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon
conviction thereof, shall be fined not less than $50 nor more than
$100. For a third or subsequent offense within six months of the
second or subsequent offense, the owner or manager is guilty of a
misdemeanor and, upon conviction thereof, shall be fined not less
than $100 nor more than $1,000.
NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to revise the antiquated stock laws of West Virginia. The name has been updated to "General
Livestock Trespass Law." The bill clarifies damages for injury or
loss to person or property from trespassing livestock and permits
costs to be reimbursed for containment of livestock. The bill
requires notification to the owner of trespassing livestock within
forty-eight hours. The bill requires negotiating the costs of
containment. The bill requires unclaimed livestock to be given to
the sheriff for sale at a public livestock auction and the proceeds
of the sale are distributed in a particular order. The bill
clarifies misdemeanor penalties and fines for livestock that
negligently trespass and injure persons or property. The bill also
permits restitution.
§19-18-1, §19-18-2 and §19-18-3 have been completely
rewritten; therefore, strike-throughs and underscoring have been
omitted.