Senate Bill No. 284
(By Senator Buckalew)
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[Introduced February 1, 1996; referred to the Committee
on the Judiciary.]
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A BILL to amend article ten, chapter fifteen of the code of West
Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended,
by adding thereto a new section, designated section five,
relating to federal law-enforcement officers having
authority to enforce state, county and municipal laws while
in active service.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That article ten, chapter fifteen of the code of West
Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended, be
amended by adding thereto a new section, designated section five,
to read as follows:
ARTICLE 10. COOPERATION BETWEEN LAW-ENFORCEMENT AGENCIES.
§15-10-5. Federal officers peace-keeping authority.
(a) Notwithstanding any provision of this code to the
contrary, any person who is employed by the United States
government as a law-enforcement officer with the power of arrest
for offenses against the United States, shall, while actively
engaged in such law-enforcement activities, have the authority to
enforce the laws of this state granted to the law-enforcement
officer as such is defined in section one, article twenty-nine,
chapter thirty of this code: Provided, That this section shall
not be construed as granting federal law-enforcement officers the
authority to enforce traffic laws or parking ordinances.
(b) Prior to a federal law-enforcement officer being granted
the authority set out in subsection (a) of this section, the
agency for which the officer is employed shall be certified as a
federal law-enforcement agency by the governor's committee on
crime, delinquency and correction.
NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to grant federal
law-enforcement officers the power to enforce the laws of this
state while engaged in law-enforcement activities.
This section is new; therefore, strike-throughs and
underscoring have been omitted.