H. B. 2796
(By Delegates Faircloth, Evans and Harrison)
[Introduced March 31, 1993; referred to the
Committee on the Judiciary.]
A BILL to amend and reenact section two, article one, chapter
forty-nine of the code of West Virginia, one thousand nine
hundred thirty-one, as amended, relating to changing the
definition of "child" by lowering the upper age from
eighteen to sixteen years of age.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That section two, article one, chapter forty-nine of the
code of West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as
amended, be amended and reenacted to read as follows:
ARTICLE 1. PURPOSES; DEFINITIONS.
§49-1-2. "Child" defined.
"Child" means any person under eighteen sixteen years of
age. Once A child is transferred to a court with criminal
jurisdiction pursuant to section ten, article five of this
chapter, he nevertheless remains a child for the purposes of the
applicability of the provisions of this chapter with the
exception of sections one through seventeen eighteen of articlefive of this chapter, unless otherwise stated therein.
NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to lower the legal age at
which childhood ends from 18 to 16 years of age.
Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken
from the present law, and underscoring indicates new language
that would be added.