Senate Bill No. 732
(By Senator Sprouse)
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[Introduced February 18, 2008; referred to the Committee on
Government Organization; and then to the Committee on the
Judiciary.]
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A BILL to repeal §8-12-5a of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as
amended; to amend and reenact §7-1-3 of said code; to amend
and reenact §8-23-5 of said code; to amend and reenact
§61-7-2, §61-7-11a and §61-7-14 of said code; and to amend
said code by adding thereto two new sections, designated
§61-7-16 and §61-7-17, all relating to limitations upon the
keeping and bearing of arms; defining terms; repealing
language concerning county and municipal ordinances
restricting firearms or ammunition; creating additional
exceptions to certain restrictions on where deadly weapons may
be possessed; declaring the provisions of the code to be the
sole means by which the keeping and bearing of arms may be
regulated; preempting any ordinance, rule, policy or
administrative action inconsistent with the provisions of the
code; setting forth exceptions; authorizing public property
owners to prohibit or restrict the possession of deadly weapons to secure restricted access areas; all property owners
who have legally restricted or prohibited the possession or
carrying of weapons on their premises must give notice of such
prohibitions or restrictions by posting specified signs;
setting forth the format of those signs; and effect of failure
to properly post signs indicating such prohibition or
restriction.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That §8-12-5a of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended,
be repealed; that §7-1-3 of said code be amended and reenacted;
that §8-12-5 of said code be amended and reenacted; that §61-7-2,
§61-7-11a and §61-7-14 of said code be amended and reenacted; and
that said code be amended by adding thereto two new sections,
designated §61-7-16 and §61-7-17, all to read as follows:
CHAPTER 7. COUNTY COMMISSIONS AND OFFICERS.
ARTICLE 1.
COUNTY COMMISSIONS GENERALLY.
§7-1-3. Jurisdiction, powers and duties.
The county commissions, through their clerks, shall have the
custody of all deeds and other papers presented for record in their
counties and the same shall be preserved therein, or otherwise
disposed of as now is, or may be prescribed by law. They shall
have jurisdiction in all matters of probate, the appointment and
qualification of personal representatives, guardians, committees,
curators and the settlement of their accounts and in all matters
relating to apprentices. They shall also, under the rules as now
are or may be prescribed by law, have the superintendence and administration of the internal police and fiscal affairs of their
counties, including the establishment and regulation of roads,
ways, streets, avenues, drives and the like, and the naming or
renaming thereof, in cooperation with local postal authorities, the
Division of Highways and the directors of county emergency
communications centers, to assure uniform, nonduplicative
conversion of all rural routes to city-type addressing on a
permanent basis, bridges, public landings, ferries and mills, with
authority to lay and disburse the county levies. They shall, in
all cases of contest, judge of the election, qualification and
returns of their own members, and of all county and district
officers, subject to appeal as prescribed by law. The tribunals as
have been heretofore established by the Legislature under and by
virtue of section thirty-four, article VIII of the Constitution of
one thousand eight hundred seventy-two, for police and fiscal
purposes, shall, until otherwise provided by law, remain and
continue as at present constituted in the counties in which they
have been respectively established, and shall be and act as to
police and fiscal matters in lieu of the county commission herein
mentioned, until otherwise provided by law. And until otherwise
provided by law, the clerk as is mentioned in section twenty-six of
said article, as amended, shall exercise any powers and discharge
any duties heretofore conferred on, or required of, any court or
tribunal established for judicial purposes under said section, or
the clerk of the court or tribunal, respectively, respecting the
recording and preservation of deeds and other papers presented for record, matters of probate, the appointment and qualification of
personal representatives, guardians, committees, curators and the
settlement of their accounts and in all matters relating to
apprentices.
The county commission may not limit the right of any
person to purchase, possess, transfer, own, carry, transport, sell
or store any revolver, pistol, rifle or shotgun or any ammunition
or ammunition components to be used therewith nor to so regulate
the keeping of gunpowder so as to, directly or indirectly, prohibit
the ownership of the ammunition: Provided, That no provision in
this section may be construed to limit the authority of a county to
restrict the commercial use of real estate in designated areas
through planning or zoning ordinances.
CHAPTER 8. MUNICIPAL CORPORATIONS.
ARTICLE 12. GENERAL AND SPECIFIC POWERS, DUTIES AND ALLIED
RELATIONS OF MUNICIPALITIES, GOVERNING BODIES AND
MUNICIPAL OFFICERS AND EMPLOYEES; SUITS AGAINST
MUNICIPALITIES.
§8-12-5. General powers of every municipality and the governing
body thereof.
In addition to the powers and authority granted by: (i) The
Constitution of this state; (ii) other provisions of this chapter;
(iii) other general law; and (iv) any charter, and to the extent
not inconsistent or in conflict with any of the foregoing except
special legislative charters, every municipality and the governing
body thereof shall have plenary power and authority therein by
ordinance or resolution, as the case may require, and by appropriate action based thereon:
(1) To lay off, establish, construct, open, alter, curb,
recurb, pave or repave and keep in good repair, or vacate,
discontinue and close, streets, avenues, roads, alleys, ways,
sidewalks, drains and gutters, for the use of the public, and to
improve and light the same, and have them kept free from
obstructions on or over them which have not been authorized
pursuant to the succeeding provisions of this subdivision; and,
subject to such terms and conditions as the governing body shall
prescribe, to permit, without in any way limiting the power and
authority granted by the provisions of article sixteen of this
chapter, any person to construct and maintain a passageway,
building or other structure overhanging or crossing the airspace
above a public street, avenue, road, alley, way, sidewalk or
crosswalk, but before any permission for any person to construct
and maintain a passageway, building or other structure overhanging
or crossing any airspace is granted, a public hearing thereon shall
be held by the governing body after publication of a notice of the
date, time, place and purpose of the public hearing has been
published as a Class I legal advertisement in compliance with the
provisions of article three, chapter fifty-nine of this code and
the publication area for the publication shall be the municipality:
Provided, That any permit so granted shall automatically cease and
terminate in the event of abandonment and nonuse thereof for the
purposes intended for a period of ninety days, and all rights
therein or thereto shall revert to the municipality for its use and benefit;
(2) To provide for the opening and excavation of streets,
avenues, roads, alleys, ways, sidewalks, crosswalks and public
places belonging to the municipality and regulate the conditions
under which any such opening may be made;
(3) To prevent by proper penalties the throwing, depositing or
permitting to remain on any street, avenue, road, alley, way,
sidewalk, square or other public place any glass, scrap iron,
nails, tacks, wire, other litter or any offensive matter or
anything likely to injure the feet of individuals or animals or the
tires of vehicles;
(4) To regulate the use of streets, avenues, roads, alleys,
ways, sidewalks, crosswalks and public places belonging to the
municipality, including the naming or renaming thereof, and to
consult with local postal authorities, the Division of Highways and
the directors of county emergency communications centers to assure
uniform, nonduplicative addressing on a permanent basis;
(5) To regulate the width of streets, avenues and roads, and,
subject to the provisions of article eighteen of this chapter, to
order the sidewalks, footways and crosswalks to be paved, repaved,
curbed or recurbed and kept in good order, free and clean, by the
owners or occupants thereof or of the real property next adjacent
thereto;
(6) To establish, construct, alter, operate and maintain, or
discontinue, bridges, tunnels and ferries and approaches thereto;
(7) To provide for the construction and maintenance of water
drains, the drainage of swamps or marshlands and drainage systems;
(8) To provide for the construction, maintenance and covering
over of watercourses;
(9) To control and administer the waterfront and waterways of
the municipality and to acquire, establish, construct, operate and
maintain and regulate flood control works, wharves and public
landings, warehouses and all adjuncts and facilities for navigation
and commerce and the utilization of the waterfront and waterways
and adjacent property;
(10) To prohibit the accumulation and require the disposal of
garbage, refuse, debris, wastes, ashes, trash and other similar
accumulations whether on private or public property
: Provided,
That, in the event the municipality annexes an area which has been
receiving solid waste collection services from a certificated solid
waste motor carrier, the municipality and the solid waste motor
carrier may negotiate an agreement for continuation of the private
solid waste motor carrier services for a period of time, not to
exceed three years, during which time the certificated solid waste
motor carrier may continue to provide exclusive solid waste
collection services in the annexed territory;
(11) To construct, establish, acquire, equip, maintain and
operate incinerator plants and equipment and all other facilities
for the efficient removal and destruction of garbage, refuse,
wastes, ashes, trash and other similar matters;
(12) To regulate or prohibit the purchase or sale of articles
intended for human use or consumption which are unfit for use or consumption, or which may be contaminated or otherwise unsanitary;
(13) To prevent injury or annoyance to the public or
individuals from anything dangerous, offensive or unwholesome;
(14) To regulate the keeping of gunpowder and other
combustibles:
Provided, That any regulation of the keeping of
gunpowder may not act, directly or indirectly, to prohibit the
otherwise lawful ownership of gunpowder or ammunition;
(15) To make regulations guarding against danger or damage by
fire;
(16) To arrest, convict and punish any individual for carrying
about his or her person any revolver or other pistol, dirk, bowie
knife, razor, slingshot, billy, metallic or other false knuckles or
any other dangerous or other deadly weapon of like kind or
character;
(17) (16) To arrest, convict and punish any person for
importing, printing, publishing, selling or distributing any
pornographic publications;
(18) (17) To arrest, convict and punish any person for keeping
a house of ill fame, or for letting to another person any house or
other building for the purpose of being used or kept as a house of
ill fame, or for knowingly permitting any house owned by him or her
or under his or her control to be kept or used as a house of ill
fame, or for loafing, boarding or loitering in a house of ill fame,
or frequenting same;
(19) (18) To prevent and suppress conduct and practices which
are immoral, disorderly, lewd, obscene and indecent;
(20) (19) To prevent the illegal sale of intoxicating liquors,
drinks, mixtures and preparations;
(21) (20) To arrest, convict and punish any individual for
driving or operating a motor vehicle while intoxicated or under the
influence of liquor, drugs or narcotics;
(22) (21) To arrest, convict and punish any person for
gambling or keeping any gaming tables, commonly called "A, B, C,"
or "E, O," table or faro bank or keno table, or table of like kind,
under any denomination, whether the gaming table be played with
cards, dice or otherwise, or any person who shall be a partner or
concerned in interest, in keeping or exhibiting the table or bank,
or keeping or maintaining any gaming house or place, or betting or
gambling for money or anything of value;
(23) (22) To provide for the elimination of hazards to public
health and safety and to abate or cause to be abated anything which
in the opinion of a majority of the governing body is a public
nuisance;
(24) (23) To license, or for good cause to refuse to license
in a particular case, or in its discretion to prohibit in all
cases, the operation of pool and billiard rooms and the maintaining
for hire of pool and billiard tables notwithstanding the general
law as to state licenses for any such business and the provisions
of section four, article thirteen of this chapter; and when the
municipality, in the exercise of its discretion, refuses to grant
a license to operate a pool or billiard room, mandamus may not lie
to compel the municipality to grant the license unless it shall clearly appear that the refusal of the municipality to grant a
license is discriminatory or arbitrary; and in the event that the
municipality determines to license any business, the municipality
has plenary power and authority and it shall be the duty of its
governing body to make and enforce reasonable ordinances regulating
the licensing and operation of the businesses;
(25) (24) To protect places of divine worship and to preserve
peace and order in and about the premises where held;
(26) (25) To regulate or prohibit the keeping of animals or
fowls and to provide for the impounding, sale or destruction of
animals or fowls kept contrary to law or found running at large;
(27) (26) To arrest, convict and punish any person for
cruelly, unnecessarily or needlessly beating, torturing,
mutilating, killing, or overloading or overdriving or willfully
depriving of necessary sustenance any domestic animal;
(28) (27) To provide for the regular building of houses or
other structures, for the making of division fences by the owners
of adjacent premises and for the drainage of lots by proper drains
and ditches;
(29) (28) To provide for the protection and conservation of
shade or ornamental trees, whether on public or private property,
and for the removal of trees or limbs of trees in a dangerous
condition;
(30) (29) To prohibit with or without zoning the location of
occupied house trailers or mobile homes in certain residential
areas;
(31) (30) To regulate the location and placing of signs,
billboards, posters and similar advertising;
(32) (31) To erect, establish, construct, acquire, improve,
maintain and operate a gas system, a waterworks system, an electric
system or sewer system and sewage treatment and disposal system, or
any combination of the foregoing (subject to all of the pertinent
provisions of articles nineteen and twenty of this chapter and
particularly to the limitations or qualifications on the right of
eminent domain set forth in articles nineteen and twenty), within
or without the corporate limits of the municipality, except that
the municipality may not erect any system partly without the
corporate limits of the municipality to serve persons already
obtaining service from an existing system of the character proposed
and where the system is by the municipality erected, or has
heretofore been so erected, partly within and partly without the
corporate limits of the municipality, the municipality has the
right to lay and collect charges for service rendered to those
served within and those served without the corporate limits of the
municipality and to prevent injury to the system or the pollution
of the water thereof and its maintenance in a healthful condition
for public use within the corporate limits of the municipality;
(33) (32) To acquire watersheds, water and riparian rights,
plant sites, rights-of-way and any and all other property and
appurtenances necessary, appropriate, useful, convenient or
incidental to any system, waterworks or sewage treatment and
disposal works, as aforesaid, subject to all of the pertinent provisions of articles nineteen and twenty of this chapter;
(34) (33) To establish, construct, acquire, maintain and
operate and regulate markets and prescribe the time of holding the
same;
(35) (34) To regulate and provide for the weighing of articles
sold or for sale;
(36) (35) To establish, construct, acquire, maintain and
operate public buildings, municipal buildings or city halls,
auditoriums, arenas, jails, juvenile detention centers or homes,
motor vehicle parking lots or any other public works;
(37) (36) To establish, construct, acquire, provide, equip,
maintain and operate recreational parks, playgrounds and other
recreational facilities for public use and in this connection also
to proceed in accordance with the provisions of article two,
chapter ten of this code;
(38) (37) To establish, construct, acquire, maintain and
operate a public library or museum or both for public use;
(39) (38) To provide for the appointment and financial support
of a library board in accordance with the provisions of article
one, chapter ten of this code;
(40) (39) To establish and maintain a public health unit in
accordance with the provisions of section two, article two, chapter
sixteen of this code, which unit shall exercise its powers and
perform its duties subject to the supervision and control of the
West Virginia Board of Health and state Bureau for Public Health;
(41) (40) To establish, construct, acquire, maintain and operate hospitals, sanitaria and dispensaries;
(42) (41) To acquire, by purchase, condemnation or otherwise,
land within or near the corporate limits of the municipality for
providing and maintaining proper places for the burial of the dead
and to maintain and operate the same and regulate interments
therein upon terms and conditions as to price and otherwise as may
be determined by the governing body and, in order to carry into
effect the authority, the governing body may acquire any cemetery
or cemeteries already established;
(43) (42) To exercise general police jurisdiction over any
territory without the corporate limits owned by the municipality or
over which it has a right-of-way;
(44) (43) To protect and promote the public morals, safety,
health, welfare and good order;
(45) (44) To adopt rules for the transaction of business and
the government and regulation of its governing body;
(46) (45) Except as otherwise provided, to require and take
bonds from any officers, when considered necessary, payable to the
municipality, in its corporate name, with such sureties and in a
penalty as the governing body may see fit, conditioned upon the
faithful discharge of their duties;
(47) (46) To require and take from the employees and
contractors such bonds in a penalty, with such sureties and with
such conditions, as the governing body may see fit;
(48) (47) To investigate and inquire into all matters of
concern to the municipality or its inhabitants;
(49) (48) To establish, construct, require, maintain and
operate such instrumentalities, other than free public schools, for
the instruction, enlightenment, improvement, entertainment,
recreation and welfare of the municipality's inhabitants as the
governing body may consider necessary or appropriate for the public
interest;
(50) (49) To create, maintain and operate a system for the
enumeration, identification and registration, or either, of the
inhabitants of the municipality and visitors thereto, or the
classes thereof as may be considered advisable;
(51) (50) To require owners, residents or occupants of
factory-built homes situated in a factory-built rental home
community with at least ten factory-built homes, to visibly post
the specific numeric portion of the address of each factory-built
home on the immediate premises of the factory-built home of
sufficient size to be visible from the adjoining street:
Provided,
That in the event no numeric or other specific designation of an
address exists for a factory-built home subject to the
authorization granted by this subdivision, the municipality has the
authority to provide a numeric or other specific designation of an
address for the factory-built home and require that it be posted in
accordance with the authority otherwise granted by this section.
(52) (51) To appropriate and expend not exceeding twenty-five
cents per capita per annum for advertising the municipality and the
entertainment of visitors;
(53) (52) To conduct programs to improve community relations and public relations generally and to expend municipal revenue for
such purposes;
(54) (53) To reimburse applicants for employment by the
municipality for travel and other reasonable and necessary expenses
actually incurred by the applicants in traveling to and from the
municipality to be interviewed;
(55) (54) To provide revenue for the municipality and
appropriate the same to its expenses;
(56) (55) To create and maintain an employee benefits fund
which may not exceed one tenth of one percent of the annual payroll
budget for general employee benefits and which is set up for the
purpose of stimulating and encouraging employees to develop and
implement cost-saving ideas and programs and to expend moneys from
the fund for these purposes;
(57) (56) To enter into reciprocal agreements with
governmental subdivisions or agencies of any state sharing a common
border for the protection of people and property from fire and for
emergency medical services and for the reciprocal use of equipment
and personnel for these purposes; and
(58) (57) To provide penalties for the offenses and violations
of law mentioned in this section, subject to the provisions of
section one, article eleven of this chapter, and such penalties may
not exceed any penalties provided in this chapter and chapter
sixty-one of this code for like offenses and violations.
CHAPTER 61. CRIMES AND THEIR PUNISHMENT.
ARTICLE 7. DANGEROUS WEAPONS.
§61-7-2. Definitions.
As used in this article, unless the context otherwise
requires:
(1) "Blackjack" means a short bludgeon consisting, at the
striking end, of an encased piece of lead or some other heavy
substance and, at the handle end, a strap or springy shaft which
increases the force of impact when a person or object is struck.
The term "blackjack" shall include, but not be limited to, a billy,
billy club, sand club, sandbag or slapjack.
(2) "Gravity knife" means any knife that has a blade released
from the handle by the force of gravity or the application of
centrifugal force and when so released is locked in place by means
of a button, spring, lever or other locking or catching device.
(3) "Knife" means an instrument, intended to be used or
readily adaptable to be used as a weapon, consisting of a
sharp-edged or sharp-pointed blade, usually made of steel, attached
to a handle which is capable of inflicting cutting, stabbing or
tearing wounds. The term "knife" shall include, but not be limited
to, any dagger, dirk, poniard or stiletto, with a blade over three
and one-half inches in length, any switchblade knife or gravity
knife and any other instrument capable of inflicting cutting,
stabbing or tearing wounds. A pocket knife with a blade three and
one-half inches or less in length, a hunting or fishing knife
carried for hunting, fishing, sports or other recreational uses, or
a knife designed for use as a tool or household implement shall not
be included within the term "knife" as defined herein unless such knife is knowingly used or intended to be used to produce serious
bodily injury or death.
(4) "Switchblade knife" means any knife having a
spring-operated blade which opens automatically upon pressure being
applied to a button, catch or other releasing device in its handle.
(5) "Nunchuka" means a flailing instrument consisting of two
or more rigid parts, connected by a chain, cable, rope or other
nonrigid, flexible or springy material, constructed in such a
manner as to allow the rigid parts to swing freely so that one
rigid part may be used as a handle and the other rigid part may be
used as the striking end.
(6) "Metallic or false knuckles" means a set of finger rings
attached to a transverse piece to be worn over the front of the
hand for use as a weapon and constructed in such a manner that,
when striking another person with the fist or closed hand,
considerable physical damage may be inflicted upon the person
struck. The terms "metallic or false knuckles" shall include any
such instrument without reference to the metal or other substance
or substances from which the metallic or false knuckles are made.
(7) "Pistol" means a short firearm having a chamber which is
integral with the barrel, designed to be aimed and fired by the use
of a single hand.
(8) "Revolver" means a short firearm having a cylinder of
several chambers that are brought successively into line with the
barrel to be discharged, designed to be aimed and fired by the use
of a single hand.
(9) "Deadly weapon" means an instrument which is designed to
be used to produce serious bodily injury or death or is readily
adaptable to such use. The term "deadly weapon" shall include, but
not be limited to,
the instruments defined in subdivisions (1)
through (8), inclusive, of this section a firearm, antique firearm,
blackjack, nunchucka, metallic or false knuckles, knife or other
deadly weapons of like kind or character which may be easily
concealed on or about the person. For the purposes of section
one-a, article five, chapter eighteen-a of this code and section
eleven-a, article seven of this chapter, in addition to the
definition of "knife" set forth in subdivision (3) of this section,
the term "deadly weapon" also includes any instrument included
within the definition of "knife" with a blade of three and one-half
inches or less in length. Additionally, for the purposes of
section one-a, article five, chapter eighteen-a of this code and
section eleven-a, article seven of this chapter, the term "deadly
weapon" includes explosive, chemical, biological and radiological
materials. Notwithstanding any other provision of this section,
the term "deadly weapon" does not include any item or material
owned by the school or county board, intended for curricular use,
and used by the student at the time of the alleged offense solely
for curricular purposes.
(10) "Concealed" means hidden from ordinary observation so as
to prevent disclosure or recognition. A deadly weapon is concealed
when it is carried on or about the person in such a manner that
another person in the ordinary course of events would not be placed on notice that the deadly weapon was being carried.
(11) "Firearm" means:
(A) Any weapon,
including a starter pistol, which will
or is
designed to expel a projectile by action of an explosion;
(B) The frame or receiver of any such weapon; and
(C) Any firearm silencer.
(12) "Controlled substance" has the same meaning as
is
ascribed to that term in subsection (d), in section one hundred
one, article one, chapter sixty-a of this code.
(13) "Drug" has the same meaning as
is ascribed to that term
in
subsection (1), section one hundred one, article one, chapter
sixty-a of this code.
(14) "Alien" means any person not a citizen or national of the
United States.
(15) "Ammunition" means ammunition or cartridge cases,
primers, bullets, or propellant powder designed for use in any
firearm.
(16) "Antique firearm" means:
(A) Any firearm (including any firearm with a matchlock,
flintlock, percussion cap, or similar type of ignition system)
manufactured in or before 1898; or
(B) Any replica of any firearm described in paragraph (A) if
such replica:
(i) Is not designed or redesigned for using rimfire or
conventional centerfire fixed ammunition; or
(ii) Uses rimfire or conventional centerfire fixed ammunition which is no longer manufactured in the United States and which is
not readily available in the ordinary channels of commercial trade;
or
(C) Any muzzle loading rifle, muzzle loading shotgun, or
muzzle loading pistol, which is designed to use black powder, or a
black powder substitute, and which cannot use fixed ammunition.
For purposes of this paragraph, the term "antique firearm" shall
not include any weapon which incorporates a firearm frame or
receiver, any firearm which is converted into a muzzle loading
weapon, or any muzzle loading weapon which can be readily converted
to fire fixed ammunition by replacing the barrel, bolt,
breechblock, or any combination thereof.
(17) "Conviction" or "convicted," for the purposes of
determining whether a person is disqualified under this article
from shipping, transporting, possessing or receiving any firearm or
other deadly weapon or obtaining a concealed weapon license, does
not include any conviction which has been expunged, or set aside or
for which a person has been pardoned, unless such pardon or
expungement expressly provides that the person may not ship,
transport, possess or receive firearms. What constitutes a
conviction of a crime shall be determined in accordance with the
law of the jurisdiction in which the proceedings were held.
(18) "Court facility" means the courtroom of the Supreme Court
of Appeals, a circuit court, a family court, a magistrate court or
a municipal court; the chambers of any justice, judge or
magistrate; those portions of a courthouse designated as witness rooms, jury deliberation rooms, attorney conference rooms, prisoner
holding cells or law library; offices of the court clerks or other
employees of the judicial department of this state; but does not
include any common area of ingress or egress to a courthouse that
provides access to the noncourt facility areas of a courthouse.
(19) "Courthouse" means:
(A) Any building owned by this state or a political
subdivision thereof that houses a court facility, exclusive of any
parking lot, parking garage or other area set aside for vehicular
travel or parking; or
(B) The portion of any other building that is leased by this
state or a political subdivision thereof, if a court facility is
housed within any portion of the leased premises, exclusive of any
parking lot, parking garage or other area set aside for vehicular
travel or parking or any portion of the building not leased by this
state or a political subdivision thereof.
(20) "Crime punishable by imprisonment for a term exceeding
one year" does not include:
(A) Any federal or state offenses pertaining to antitrust
violations, unfair trade practices, restraints of trade, or other
similar offenses relating to the regulation of business practices;
or
(B) Any state offense classified by the laws of the state as
a misdemeanor and punishable by a term of imprisonment of two years
or less.
(21) "Family or household member" has the same meaning as in section two hundred four, article twenty-seven, chapter forty-eight
of this code.
(22) "Fugitive from justice" means any person who has fled
from any State to avoid prosecution for a crime or to avoid giving
testimony in any criminal proceeding.
(23) "Handgun" means any firearm which has a short stock and
is designed to be held and fired by the use of a single hand and
includes any pistol or revolver.
(24) "Intimate partner" means, with respect to a person, the
spouse of the person, a former spouse of the person, an individual
who is a parent of a child of the person, and an individual who
cohabitates or has cohabited with the person.
(25) "Law-enforcement officer" has the same meaning as in
section one, article twenty-nine, chapter thirty of this code.
(26) "Law-enforcement official" has the same meaning as in
section one, article twenty-nine, chapter thirty of this code.
(27) "Loaded," with respect to a firearm, means that the
firearm:
(A) Has live, unexpended ammunition is in the firing position
or a position whereby the manual operation of any mechanism once
would cause live, unexpended ammunition to be fired;
(B) Has live, unexpended ammunition in a clip or magazine that
is locked in place in the firearm;
(C) Has live, unexpended ammunition in the cylinder, if the
firearm is a revolver; or
(D) Is capped or primed and has a powder charge and ball or shot in the barrel or cylinders, if the firearm is a muzzle-loader.
A firearm is not loaded solely because a loaded clip, magazine
or speed-loader is readily accessible for immediate use or loading
of an otherwise unloaded firearm.
(28)(A) Except as otherwise provided in this subdivision,
"misdemeanor crime of domestic violence" means an offense that:
(i) Is a misdemeanor under federal or state law; and
(ii) Has, as an element, the use or attempted use of physical
force, or the threatened use of a deadly weapon, committed by a
current or former spouse, parent, or guardian of the victim, by a
person with whom the victim shares a child in common, by a person
who is cohabiting with or has cohabited with the victim as a
spouse, parent, or guardian, or by a person similarly situated to
a spouse, parent, or guardian of the victim.
(B) A person shall not be considered to have been convicted of
such an offense for purposes of this article, unless:
(i) The person was represented by counsel in the case, or
knowingly and intelligently waived the right to counsel in the
case; and
(ii) In the case of a prosecution for an offense described in
this paragraph for which a person was entitled to a jury trial in
the jurisdiction in which the case was tried, either:
(I) The case was tried by a jury, or
(II) The person knowingly and intelligently waived the right
to have the case tried by a jury, by guilty plea or otherwise.
(29) "Private property owner" means any property owner other than a public property owner.
(30) "Property owner" means an owner, lessee or other person
charged with the care, custody and control of real property. For
the purposes of this definition, "person" means an individual or
any entity which may acquire title to real property.
(31) "Public property owner" means this state or any political
subdivision thereof, or any institution, agency or other
instrumentality thereof, in its capacity as a property owner.
(32) "Readily accessible for immediate use" means that a
firearm, ammunition or other deadly weapon is carried on the person
or within such close proximity and in such a manner that it can be
retrieved and used as easily and quickly as if carried on the
person.
(33) "School bus" has the same meaning as in section one,
article one, chapter seventeen-a of this code.
(34) "School property" means
:
(A) Any public or private primary or secondary school building
and its improved grounds, whether leased or owned by the school,
including any vocational education building, structure, facility or
grounds thereof where secondary vocational education programs are
conducted; or
(B) The area within a school bus when that school bus is being
used by any school described in subparagraph (i) of this paragraph
to transport one or more primary or secondary school students to
and from school-related activities, including curricular,
cocurricular, noncurricular, extracurricular and supplementary activities; but
School property
does not include:
(A) Any institution of higher education, public or private; or
(B) Any school bus when not in use.
(35) "Secure restricted access area" means: A secure area
beyond a security perimeter and security checkpoints where all
visitors are screened for weapons prohibited within the area, a
secure weapon storage area is provided and in which the safety of
all occupants of the area is protected by the security perimeter
and the significant presence of law-enforcement officers or
professional security guards; and
Secure restricted access area
does not include common areas of
ingress and egress open to the general public outside the security
perimeter and checkpoints.
(36) "Secure weapon storage area" means a facility maintained
in conjunction with a secure restricted access area, courthouse or
court facility that:
(A) Provides free storage of any deadly weapon otherwise
lawful for the depositor to possess whose possession within the
secure restricted access area, courthouse or court facility is
prohibited;
(B) Tags each weapon stored and issues a corresponding receipt
that protects the weapon from misplacement or erroneous transfer
and enables the depositor to retrieve the weapon upon exiting the
secure restricted access area, courthouse or court facility; and
(C) Which is open for retrieval at all times the secure restricted access area, courthouse or court facility is occupied
plus a reasonable amount of time thereafter for a depositor who has
lawfully entered and remained in the secure restricted access area,
courthouse or court facility to retrieve the weapon and not be
unduly denied restoration of his or her lawful possession of the
weapon upon leaving the secure restricted access area, courthouse
or court facility.
(37) "Unloaded":
(A) With respect to a firearm, means the state of a firearm
not being loaded; and
(B) With respect to a firearm employing a percussion cap,
flintlock, or other obsolete ignition system, in addition to the
circumstances described in paragraph (A) of this subdivision, the
firearm is "unloaded" when the weapon is uncapped or when the
priming charge is removed from the pan.
§61-7-11a. Possessing deadly weapons on premises of educational
facilities; reports by school principals; suspension
of driver license; possessing deadly weapons on
premises housing courts of law and in offices of
family law master.
(a) The Legislature hereby finds that the safety and welfare
of the citizens of this state are inextricably dependent upon
assurances of safety for children attending, and the persons
employed by, schools in this state and for those persons employed
with the judicial department of this state. It is for the purpose
of providing such assurances of safety, therefore, that subsections (b), (g) and (h) of this section are enacted as a reasonable
regulation of the manner in which citizens may exercise those
rights accorded to them pursuant to section twenty-two, article
three of the Constitution of the State of West Virginia.
(b) (1) It shall be unlawful for any Except as otherwise
provided in this subsection, no person to may possess any firearm
or any other deadly weapon:
(A) On any school bus as defined in section one, article one,
chapter seventeen-a of this code, or in or on any public or private
primary or secondary education building, structure, facility or
grounds thereof, including any vocational education building,
structure, facility or grounds thereof where secondary vocational
education programs are conducted or at any school-sponsored
function. property; or
(B) On that portion of any property other than school property
that is open to the public and then exclusively used for
school-sponsored functions or extracurricular activities, while
such functions or activities are occurring; or
(C) If the person is a minor or is a student of any primary or
secondary school, at any school-sponsored function or
extracurricular activity occurring on property not specified in
paragraphs (A) or (B) of this subdivision.
(2) This subsection shall not apply to:
(A) A law-enforcement officer acting in his or her official
capacity;
(B) A person specifically authorized by the board of education of the county or principal of the school where the property is
located to conduct programs with valid educational purposes;
(C) A person who, as otherwise permitted by the provisions of
this article, possesses an unloaded firearm or any deadly weapon
other than a loaded firearm in a motor vehicle other than a school
bus, or leaves an unloaded firearm or any deadly weapon other than
a loaded firearm in a locked motor vehicle other than a school bus;
(D) Programs or raffles conducted with the approval of the
county board of education or school which include the display of
unloaded firearms or other deadly weapons; or
(E) Any person who possesses a deadly weapon as a part of any
program sponsored or facilitated by either the school or any
organization authorized by the school to conduct its programs
either on or off the school premises;
(F) A person possessing a knife or blade which he or she uses
customarily in his or her occupation, profession or trade;
(E) (G) The official mascot of West Virginia University,
commonly known as "The Mountaineer", acting in his or her official
capacity.
(H) A person transporting a deadly weapon other than a loaded
firearm, while traversing school premises for the purpose of
gaining access to public or private lands open to hunting; or
(I) Any person authorized by the county school superintendent
in the case of the county schools, or the chief administrative
officer of a private school, in writing, to carry such weapon.
Any exemption contained within this subsection only exempts a person from the provisions of this subsection and does not
constitute an exemption from any other provision of this article,
including, but not limited to, section three, article seven,
chapter sixty-one.
(3) Each principal or other chief administrator of a public or
private school shall display at all public entrances to school
buildings, sports arenas, gymnasiums, stadiums, and cafeterias; at
the corners of school property that make a turn of thirty degrees
or more and are not enclosed by fences, walls, or other complete
barriers with gates or controlled entrances; at the gate or
controlled entrances of enclosed properties; and at the entrance of
any access road for all open areas owned, operated, leased, or
controlled by the school, signs conforming to the specifications of
section sixteen of this article, which shall contain the following
text:
"UNLAWFUL POSSESSION OF A WEAPON ON SCHOOL PROPERTY IN WEST
VIRGINIA IS A FELONY."
"POSTED PURSUANT TO WV CODE §61-7-11a."
Failure to post the required signs shall bar any prosecution
under this subsection of any person who is at least eighteen years
of age and not a student of a primary or secondary school. Failure
to post the required signs shall not prohibit any prosecution or
other disciplinary action against any minor or student.
(3) (4) Any person violating this subsection shall be is
guilty of a felony, and, upon conviction thereof, shall be
imprisoned in the penitentiary of this state for a definite term of years of not less than two years nor more than ten years, or fined
not more than five thousand dollars, or both.
(c) It shall be the duty of The principal of each school
subject to the authority of the State Board of Education to shall
report any violation of subsection (b) of this section discovered
by such principal to the State Superintendent of Schools within
seventy-two hours after such violation occurs. The State Board of
Education shall keep and maintain such reports and may prescribe
rules establishing policy and procedures for the making and
delivery of the same as required by this subsection. In addition,
it shall be the duty of The principal of each school subject to
the authority of the State Board of Education to shall also report
any violation of subsection (b) of this section discovered by such
principal to the appropriate local office of the division of public
safety State Police within seventy-two hours after such violation
occurs.
(d) In addition to the methods of disposition provided by
article five, chapter forty-nine of this code, any court which
adjudicates a person who is fourteen years of age or older as
delinquent for a violation of subsection (b) of this section may,
in its discretion, order the Division of Motor Vehicles to suspend
any driver's license or instruction permit issued to such person
for such period of time as the court may deem appropriate, such
suspension, however, not to extend beyond such person's nineteenth
birthday; or, where such person has not been issued a driver's
license or instruction permit by this state, order the Division of
Motor Vehicles to deny such person's application for the same for
such period of time as the court may deem appropriate, such denial, however, not to extend beyond such person's nineteenth birthday.
Any suspension ordered by the court pursuant to this subsection
shall be effective upon the date of entry of such order. Where the
court orders the suspension of a driver's license or instruction
permit pursuant to this subsection, the court shall confiscate any
driver's license or instruction permit in the adjudicated person's
possession and forward the same to the Division of Motor Vehicles.
(e) (1) If a person eighteen years of age or older is
convicted of violating a felony under subsection (b) of this
section, and if such person does not act to appeal such conviction
within the time periods described in subdivision (2) of this
subsection, such person's license or privilege to operate a motor
vehicle in this state shall be revoked in accordance with the
provisions of this section.
(2) The clerk of the court in which the person is convicted as
described in subdivision (1) of this subsection shall forward to
the Commissioner of Motor Vehicles a transcript of the judgment of
conviction. If the conviction is the judgment of a magistrate
court, the magistrate court clerk shall forward such transcript
when the person convicted has not requested an appeal within twenty
days of the sentencing for such conviction. If the conviction is
the judgment of a circuit court, the circuit clerk shall forward
such transcript when the person convicted has not filed a notice of
intent to file a petition for appeal or writ of error within thirty
days after the judgment was entered.
(3) If, upon examination of the transcript of the judgment of
conviction, the Commissioner shall determine of Motor Vehicles
determines that the person was convicted as described in subdivision (1) of this subsection, the commissioner shall make and
enter an order revoking such person's license or privilege to
operate a motor vehicle in this state for a period of one year, or,
in the event if the person is a student enrolled in a secondary
school, for a period of one year or until the person's twentieth
birthday, whichever is the greater period. The order shall contain
the reasons for the revocation and the revocation period. The
order of suspension shall advise the person that because of the
receipt of the court's transcript, a presumption exists that the
person named in the order of suspension is the same person named in
the transcript. The commissioner may grant an administrative
hearing which substantially complies with the requirements of the
provisions of section two, article five-a, chapter seventeen-c of
this code upon a preliminary showing that a possibility exists that
the person named in the notice of conviction is not the same person
whose license is being suspended. Such request for hearing shall
be made within ten days after receipt of a copy of the order of
suspension. The sole purpose of this hearing shall be for the
person requesting the hearing to present evidence that he or she is
not the person named in the notice. In the event If the
Commissioner of Motor Vehicles grants an administrative hearing,
the commissioner shall stay the license suspension pending the
commissioner's order resulting from the hearing.
(4) For the purposes of this subsection, a person is convicted
when such person enters a plea of guilty or is found guilty by a
court or jury.
(f) (1) It shall be unlawful for any parent(s), guardian(s) or
custodian(s) of a person less than eighteen years of age an unemancipated minor who knows that said person the unemancipated
minor is in violation of subsection (b) of this section, or who has
reasonable cause to believe that said person's unemancipated
minor's violation of said subsection is imminent, to fail to
immediately report such knowledge or belief to the appropriate
school or law-enforcement officials.
(2) Any person violating this subsection shall be is guilty of
a misdemeanor, and, upon conviction thereof, shall be fined not
more than one thousand dollars, or shall be confined in jail for
not more than one year, or both.
(g) (1) It shall be unlawful for Except as provided by
subdivision (2) of this subsection, any person to possess who
possesses any firearm or any other deadly weapon on any premises
which houses a court of law or in the offices of a family law
master within any courthouse or court facility is guilty of a
misdemeanor, and, upon conviction thereof, shall be fined not more
than one thousand dollars, confined in jail for not more than one
year, or both.
(2) This subsection shall not apply to:
(A) A law-enforcement officer acting in his or her official
capacity Any person authorized to carry a concealed deadly weapon
pursuant to subsections (3), (4), (5), (6) and (8), section six of
this article; and
(B) A person exempted from the provisions of this subsection
by order of record entered by a court with jurisdiction over such
premises or offices the applicable court facility.
(3) Any person violating this subsection shall be guilty of a
misdemeanor, and, upon conviction thereof, shall be fined not more than one thousand dollars, or shall be confined in jail not more
than one year, or both Any court facility without a secure
restricted access area shall provide a secure weapon storage area
in the same manner required of a secure restricted access area.
The lack of any secure weapon storage area does not exempt any
person from compliance with subdivision (1) of this subsection.
(4) The chief judge having jurisdiction over a court facility
shall cause to be displayed at all public entrances to the court
facility and courthouse, signs conforming to the specifications of
section sixteen of this article, which shall contain the following
text:
"POSSESSION OF A DEADLY WEAPON IN A COURTHOUSE OR COURT
FACILITY IN WEST VIRGINIA IS PROHIBITED BY LAW."
"A SECURE WEAPON STORAGE AREA IS AVAILABLE FOR THE SECURE,
LAWFUL STORAGE OF YOUR WEAPON DURING YOUR VISIT.
"POSTED PURSUANT TO WEST VIRGINIA CODE §61-7-11a."
Failure to post the required signs shall prohibit any
prosecution under this subsection of any person licensed or
otherwise authorized to carry a concealed handgun. Failure to post
the required signs shall not prohibit any prosecution under this
subsection of any other person.
(h) (1) It shall be unlawful for Any person to possess who,
with the intent to commit any crime, possesses any firearm or any
other deadly weapon on any premises which houses a court of law or
in the offices of a family law master with the intent to commit a
crime
(2) Any person violating this subsection shall be within any
courthouse or court facility is guilty of a felony, and, upon conviction thereof, shall be imprisoned in the penitentiary of this
state for a definite term of years of not less than two years nor
more than ten years, or fined not more than five thousand dollars,
or both.
(i) Nothing in this section may be construed to be in conflict
with the provisions of federal law.
§61-7-14. Right of certain persons to limit possession of
firearms on premises.
(a) Notwithstanding the provisions of this article, and except
as otherwise provided in this section, any owner, lessee or other
person charged with the care, custody and control of real private
property owner may prohibit the carrying openly or concealed of any
firearm or deadly weapon on property under his or her domain.
Provided, That for purposes of this section "person" means an
individual or any entity which may acquire title to real property
(b) Notwithstanding any provision of this code to the
contrary, no public property owner, nor any officer, employee or
agent of a public property owner, may prohibit or restrict, by a
person licensed to carry a concealed weapon or authorized by
federal law or the laws of this state to carry a concealed weapon
without a license, the lawful possession or carrying of any deadly
weapon whose possession by that person does not violate federal law
or the laws of this state, except in a secure restricted access
area or those places where carrying firearms or other deadly
weapons is prohibited by this code or by federal law.
(c) No person, property owner, tenant, employer or business
entity shall be liable in any civil action for any occurrence that
results from or is connected to the use of a deadly weapon that was lawfully stored, carried or possessed, unless the person, property
owner, tenant, employer or business entity commits a criminal act
involving the use of the deadly weapon.
(d) Any person carrying or possessing a firearm or other
deadly weapon on the property of another who refuses to temporarily
relinquish possession of such firearm or other deadly weapon, upon
being lawfully requested to do so, or to leave such premises, while
in possession of such firearm or other deadly weapon, shall be is
guilty of a misdemeanor, and, upon conviction thereof, shall be
fined not more than one thousand dollars, or confined in the
county jail for not more than six months, or both. Provided, That
the provisions of
(e) Any prohibition or restriction on possessing or carrying
any weapon under this section shall not apply to those persons set
forth in subsections (3), (4), (5), through(6) and (8) of section
six section six, article seven, chapter sixty-one of this code
while such persons are acting in an official capacity. Provided,
however, That under no circumstances may any person possess or
carry or cause the possession or carrying of any firearm or other
deadly weapon on the premises of any primary or secondary
educational facility in this state unless such person is a
law-enforcement officer or he or she has the express written
permission of the county school superintendent Except in the case
of a prohibition or restriction applicable to a private residence
established by the private property owner, and regardless of
whether actual or effective notice is given by other means, no
prohibition or restriction on possessing or carrying any weapon
under this section shall be valid unless signs are posted pursuant to section sixteen, article seven, chapter sixty-one. No person,
otherwise lawfully possessing or carrying any deadly weapon, may be
subjected to any adverse action by any property owner, employer or
other person for violating any prohibition or restriction on
possessing or carrying such weapon unless notice of such
prohibition or restriction has been given in the form required by
this section.
§61-7-16. Uniform law.
(a) This article is uniformly applicable throughout this state
and in all its political subdivisions. The individual right to
keep and bear arms, being a fundamental individual right that
predates the Second Amendment of the United States Constitution and
Article III, §23 of the State Constitution, and being a
constitutionally protected right in every part of this state, the
Legislature finds the need to provide uniform laws throughout the
state regulating the ownership, possession, purchase, other
acquisition, transport, storage, carrying, sale or other transfer
of firearms, air guns, their components and their ammunition, and,
except as specified in subsection (e) of this section, to exercise
exclusive occupation of the field of regulation in these areas to
the exclusion of all other governmental authorities in this state.
The Legislature intends that the provisions of subsections (b)
through (d) of this section be liberally construed and that the
provisions of subsection (e) of this section be narrowly construed.
(b) Except as specifically provided by the United States
Constitution, the Constitution of this state, federal law or a
specific provision of this code, any person, without further
license, permission, restriction, delay or process, may own, possess, purchase, sell, transfer, transport, store or keep any
firearm, air gun, part of a firearm or air gun, their components
and their ammunition. No department, agency, authority, board,
commission, council, institution of higher education or other
entity of this state or any political subdivision thereof may enact
or enforce any ordinance, resolution, motion, rule or policy, and
no officer, director, appointee, employee or agent of any such
entity may take any administrative action, pertaining to firearms,
air guns, their components or their ammunition other than those
expressly authorized by the Legislature by statute. For purposes
of this subsection, a statute that does not expressly refer to
deadly weapons, firearms, air guns, handguns, ammunition, or
components or combination thereof, shall not be construed to
provide express authorization.
(c) In addition to any other relief provided, the court shall
award costs and reasonable attorney fees to any person, group or
entity that prevails in a challenge to an ordinance, resolution,
motion, rule, policy or administrative action as being in conflict
with this section.
(d) In this section:
(1) The possession, transporting or carrying of firearms,
their components or their ammunition include, but are not limited
to, the possession, transporting or carrying, openly or concealed
on or about a person's person, of firearms, their components or
their ammunition; and
(2) "Air gun" means any weapon other than a firearm or antique
firearm which will or is designed to expel a projectile by means of
a compressed gas that generates a propelling force.
(e) This section does not apply to any of the following:
(1) A county or municipal zoning ordinance that regulates or
prohibits the commercial sale of firearms, air guns or components
or ammunition for firearms or air guns in areas zoned for
residential or agricultural uses;
(2) A county or municipal zoning ordinance that specifies the
hours of operation or the geographic areas where the commercial
sale of firearms, air guns or components or ammunition for firearms
or air guns may occur, provided that the zoning ordinance is
consistent with zoning ordinances for other retail establishments
in the same geographic area and does not result in a de facto
prohibition of the commercial sale of firearms, air guns or
components or ammunition for firearms or air guns in areas zoned
for commercial, retail or industrial uses;
(3) The establishment of a secure restricted access area and
a secure weapon storage area in a public building and the
restriction or prohibition of weapons in the secure restricted
access area in a manner that does not violate section fourteen,
article seven, chapter sixty-one;
(4) The otherwise lawful actions of a law-enforcement officer
or law-enforcement official acting within the scope of his or her
official duties;
(5) Any rules or administrative actions of a state, local or
regional correctional facility;
(6) Any resolution, motion, rule or policy adopted by the
State Board of Education, a county board of education or the
governing authority of an institution of higher education relating
to:
(A) Students receiving military training in the Reserved
Officers' Training Corps or other military training program
administered by the educational institution;
(B) Athletic events involving firearms or air guns; or
(C) Authorizing a resident of a dormitory located at the
institution to request only a roommate who will not possess
firearms, air guns, ammunition or other deadly weapons within the
dormitory room, providing for the exclusion of firearms, air guns,
ammunition or other deadly weapons from any dormitory room whose
residents make the election described in this paragraph, reserving
to the residents of any such room the right to mutually agree to
make or change an election under this paragraph at any time, and to
enforce any election under this paragraph;
(7) Any regulation of the possession, carrying, storage,
transportation, use, care or maintenance of weapons owned by any
public agency; or
(8) Any regulation of the possession, carrying, storage,
transportation, use, care or maintenance of weapons in the course
of employment by a public agency by individuals who are:
(A) Employed as law-enforcement officers or security officers;
or
(B) Required to possess, carry, transport or store a weapon by
the employing agency.
§61-7-17. Regulation of signs prohibiting weapons; failure to
post constitutes defense.
(a) All signs indicating a prohibition or restriction on
possessing or carrying handguns or other deadly weapons must be in
the form prescribed by this section.
(b) A sign regulated by this section shall not be valid or
enforceable unless the sign:
(1) Expresses the prohibition in both written language
interdict and universal sign language;
(2) Is posted at each entrance into a building where a person
is prohibited or restricted from carrying a designated weapon,
including each separate entry door at any entrance equipped with
more than one door, and must be:
(A) Clearly visible from outside the building from a distance
of at least thirty feet;
(B) Not less than eight inches wide by twelve inches tall in
size with an opaque white background;
(C) Contain in black one-inch tall or larger uppercase type at
the bottom of the sign and centered between the lateral edges of
the sign, words indicating the nature of the prohibition;
(D) Contain a black silhouette of a handgun inside a red
circle at least seven inches in diameter with a red diagonal line
that runs from the lower left to the upper right at a forty-five
degree angle from the horizontal;
(E) A diameter of a circle; and
(F) Placed not less than forty inches and not more than sixty
inches from the bottom of the building's entrance door; and
(3) If the premises where designated weapons are prohibited
does not have doors, then the signs contained in subdivision (1) of
this subsection must be:
(A) Not less than thirty-six inches wide by forty-eight inches
tall in size;
(B) Contain in black three-inch tall or larger uppercase type at the bottom of the sign and centered between the lateral edges of
the sign, words indicating the nature of the prohibition or
restriction;
(C) Contain a black silhouette of a handgun inside a red
circle at least thirty-four inches in diameter with a red diagonal
line that is at least two inches wide and runs from the lower left
to the upper right at a forty-five degree angle from the horizontal
and must be a diameter of a circle whose circumference is at least
two inches wide;
(D) Placed not less than forty inches and not more than
ninety-six inches above the ground; and
(E) Posted in sufficient quantities to be clearly visible from
any point of entry onto the premises and readable from a distance
of at least thirty feet.
(c) Any sign regulated by this section must expressly declare
whether persons licensed or otherwise authorized by law to carry
concealed handguns are exempt from the restriction or prohibition.
Failure to state that a person licensed or otherwise authorized by
law to carry concealed handguns constitutes an exception from the
prohibition or restriction for persons licensed or otherwise
authorized by law to carry concealed handguns.
(d) Except as otherwise provided by a more specific provision
of this code, it is a defense to any criminal offense under this
code prohibiting or restricting the possession or carrying of
deadly weapons in specified locations or to an adverse action other
than a criminal prosecution taken against a person violating any
restriction or prohibition on where weapons may be possessed or
carried that the defendant was licensed or otherwise authorized by law to carry concealed handguns, that the person was not carrying
any deadly weapons other than handguns and that the signage
required to be posted under this section was not properly posted.
NOTE: This bill
establishes: Limitations upon the keeping and
bearing of arms; defining terms; repeals language concerning county
and municipal ordinances restricting firearms or ammunition;
creates additional exceptions to certain restrictions on where
deadly weapons may be possessed; declares the provisions of the
code to be the sole means by which the keeping and bearing of arms
may be regulated; preempts any ordinance, rule, policy or
administrative action inconsistent with the provisions of the code;
sets forth exceptions; authorizes public property owners to
prohibit or restrict the possession of deadly weapons to secure
restricted access areas; requires all property owners that have
legally restricted or prohibited the possession or carrying of
weapons on their premises must give notice of such prohibitions or
restrictions by posting specified signs; sets forth the format of
those signs; and sets forth the effect of failure to properly post
signs indicating such prohibition or restriction.
Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken from
the present law, and underscoring indicates new language that would
be added.
§61-7-16 and §61-7-17 are new; therefore, strike-throughs and
underscoring have been omitted.
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