H. B. 4589


(By Delegates Wallace and McGraw)
[Introduced February 23, 1994; referred to the
Committee on the Judiciary.]




A BILL to amend and reenact section three, article three-a, chapter twenty-nine of the code of West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended, relating to conducting investigations to determine the cause of fires and permitting full-time officials of municipal paid fire departments or companies to make investigations and arrest suspected arsonists.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:

That section three, article three-a, chapter twenty-nine of the code of West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended, be amended and reenacted to read as follows:
ARTICLE 3A. AUTHORITY OF LOCAL FIRE DEPARTMENTS.

§ 29 - 3A - 3. Conducting investigation to determine cause of fire.

To determine the cause of any fire, the chief of any fire department or company or other authorized fire fighter may enter the scene of such fire within a forty-eight hour period after such fire has been extinguished.

If there is evidence that a fire was of incendiary origin, the fire chief or other authorized fire fighter may control who may enter the scene of such fire by posting no trespassing signs at such scene for a period of forty-eight hours after such fire has been extinguished.
During the period that the scene of a fire is posted against trespassing, no person shall enter such scene, except that an owner, lessee or any other person having personal property at such scene may enter at any time after such scene has been declared safe by authorized fire department or company officials to recover or salvage personal property if said owner, lessee or person is accompanied by or is granted permission to enter such scene by an authorized fire department or company official.
During investigations to determine the cause of any fire, the chief of any fire department or company, as well as other authorized fire line officers may be present at all fires, examine witnesses, compel attendance of witnesses and the production of books and papers, administer oaths, make arrests of suspected arsonists, and enter, for the purpose of examination, any building which, in his or her opinion, is in danger of fire. The chief or other authorized fire line officer shall report his or her proceedings to the governing authority at such times as are required: Provided, That this section shall not apply to members of volunteer fire departments or companies.



NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to permit fire line officers who are authorized to investigate fires which are suspected to be caused by arson to arrest suspected arsonists.

Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken from the present law, and underscoring indicates new language that would be added.