Senate Bill No. 309
(By Senators Wiedebusch, Love and Schoonover)
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[Introduced February 5, 1996; referred to the Committee
on the Judiciary.]
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A BILL to amend article five, chapter fifteen of the code of West
Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended,
by adding thereto a new section, designated section
seventeen-a, relating to creating the offense of operating
a motor vehicle so as to obstruct emergency services
personnel during a declared state of emergency; and penalty.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That article five, 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 seventeen-a,
to read as follows:
ARTICLE 5. EMERGENCY SERVICES.
§15-5-17A. Obstructing emergency personnel during a declared
state of emergency; penalty.
During any period of emergency declared by the governor
pursuant to the provisions of this article in which declaration
the governor has ordered nonemergency vehicles
to refrain from motor vehicle travel, any person who
operates a motor vehicle in such a way as to obstruct emergency
personnel or their equipment is guilty of a misdemeanor, and,
upon conviction thereof, shall be fined not more than one
thousand dollars or confined in jail for not more than six
months, or both fined and confined.
NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to create the offense of
obstructing emergency personnel or their equipment during periods
of emergency declared by the governor.
This section is new; therefore, strike-throughs and
underscoring have been omitted.