Senate Bill No. 432

(By Senator Withers)

____________

[Introduced February 21, 1994; referred to the Committee
on the Judiciary; and then to the Committee on Finance.]

____________




A BILL to amend and reenact sections ten, twelve and twelve-a, article five, chapter sixty-one of the code of West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended, relating to crimes and their punishment; crimes against public justice; and criminal penalties for escape from jail or other confinement.

Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That sections ten, twelve and twelve-a, article five, 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 5. CRIMES AGAINST PUBLIC JUSTICE.

§61-5-10. Jail or private prison breaking by convicted or unconvicted prisoner; penalties.

(a) Any person confined in jail on conviction of a criminal offense, who escapes therefrom by force, violence, or by any subterfuge, device or deception, shall, if previously sentencedto confinement in the penitentiary, be is guilty of a felony, and, upon conviction, shall be confined in the penitentiary for not less than one nor more than up to five years; and if he be previously sentenced to confinement in jail, he shall be is guilty of a misdemeanor, and, upon conviction, shall be confined in jail one year.
(b) If any person be lawfully confined in jail or private prison and not sentenced on conviction of a criminal offense, shall escape therefrom by any means, such person shall, (i) if he be confined upon a charge of a felony, be guilty of an additional felony, and, upon conviction thereof, shall be confined in the penitentiary not less than one nor more than up to five years, or (ii) if he be confined upon a charge of a misdemeanor, be guilty of an additional misdemeanor, and, upon conviction thereof, shall be confined in jail one year.
(c) If any person is lawfully confined in a private prison and escapes therefrom by force, violence, or by any subterfuge, device or deception, he or she shall be guilty of a felony, and, upon conviction, shall be imprisoned for not less than one nor more than five years.
§61-5-12. Escapes from, and other offenses relating to, state benevolent and correctional institution, or private prison or mental health facilities; penalties.

Except where otherwise provided, whoever abducts any person who is an inmate or patient of any state benevolent or correctional institution, private prison or mental healthfacility shall be is guilty of a felony, and, upon conviction thereof, shall be imprisoned in the penitentiary for not less than one nor more than up to five years. Whoever persuades, induces or entices, or attempts to persuade, induce or entice, any person who is an inmate or patient of any such institution, private prison or facility to escape therefrom, or whoever conceals or harbors any such person, knowing him or her to have run away from any such institution, private prison or facility, shall be is guilty of a misdemeanor, and, upon conviction thereof, shall be fined not less than one hundred nor more than one thousand dollars, and in addition thereto, in the discretion of the court, may be imprisoned in the county jail not less than one nor more than six months.
Any fugitive from any state benevolent or correctional institution, private prison or mental health facility, may, on the order of the superintendent or other officer of such institution or facility, be arrested and returned to such institution or facility, or to any officer or agent thereof, by any sheriff, police officer or other person, and may also be arrested and returned by any officer or agent of such institution, private prison or facility.
Whoever trespasses, idles, lounges or loiters upon the grounds of any other state benevolent or correctional institution, private prison or mental health facility or communicates, or attempts to communicate, by signals, signs, writings or otherwise with any inmate or patient of suchinstitution, private prison or facility, or conveys or assists in any way in establishing communication between an inmate or patient of such institution, private prison or facility and any person or persons outside thereof, except as authorized by the rules or regulations in force by the authority governing the same, shall be is guilty of a misdemeanor, and, upon conviction, shall be fined not less than twenty nor more than five hundred dollars, or imprisoned not less than ten nor more than thirty days in the county jail, or both, in the discretion of the court or magistrate. Whoever, with intent to defraud, purchases, accepts as a gift, or secures by barter or trade, or in any other manner, any article of clothing from an inmate or patient of any state benevolent or correctional institution, private prison or mental health facility issued to him or her, by any officer of such institution or facility, or by any private correctional officer of such private prison for his or her use, or, with such intent, secures any other article or articles belonging to any inmate or patient of such institution, private prison or facility or to such institution, private prison or facility from an inmate or patient thereof, shall be is guilty of a misdemeanor, and, upon conviction thereof, shall be fined a sum not less than double the value of such articles, except that in no case shall the fine be less than one hundred dollars. Magistrates shall have jurisdiction of all misdemeanors included in this paragraph, concurrently with the circuit court.
§61-5-12a. Escape from custody of the commissioner of
corrections.
Any person who escapes from the custody of the commissioner of corrections, regardless of where such person is confined or where such escape occurs, is guilty of a felony, and, upon conviction thereof, shall be imprisoned in the penitentiary for not less than one year nor more than up to five years. A term of imprisonment imposed pursuant to the provisions of this section shall be imposed as a consecutive sentence and shall not be served concurrently with any imprisonment, confinement or detention imposed under any prior sentence being served or otherwise being discharged at the time such person commits an offense under the provisions of this section. A person charged with an offense under the provisions of this section shall not be released from the custody of the commissioner of corrections while the prosecution of the alleged offense is pending: Provided, That time served by such person after any other prior sentence has been served or otherwise discharged shall be applied to any sentence which may ultimately be imposed for an offense under this section. Venue for the prosecution of a violation of this section shall be in the county in which the escape occurs.



NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to change the penalty for escape from jail, prison or other confinement to up to five years rather than the current indeterminate term of not less than one year nor more than five years.

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