Senate Bill No. 19
(By Senators Buckalew, Kimble, Minear, Ross, Sharpe and
Wiedebusch)
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[Introduced January 10, 1996; referred to the Committee
on the Judiciary.]
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A BILL to amend article five, chapter sixty-two of the code of
West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as
amended, by adding thereto a new section, designated section
three, relating to criminal procedure; costs in criminal
cases; and requiring convicted felons to pay the costs of
investigation of the crime as a condition of sentence and
release.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That article five, chapter sixty-two of the code of West
Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended, be
amended by adding thereto a new section, designated section
three, to read as follows:
ARTICLE 5. COSTS IN CRIMINAL CASES.
§62-5-3. Expenses of costs of investigation of felony offense.
(a) Any person convicted of a felony may be required by the
circuit court, as a part of his or her sentence, to pay the reasonable costs incurred in the investigation by law enforcement
of the offense. In determining whether to assess the costs
allowed by this section the court shall consider the following
factors in determining whether a convicted person is financially
able to pay the costs of investigation:
(1) Current income prospects for the person, taking into
account seasonal variations in income;
(2) Liquid assets of the person, assets of the person that
may provide collateral to obtain funds and assets that may be
liquidated to provide funds to pay the assessment;
(3) Fixed debts and obligations of the person, including
federal, state and local taxes, restitution and medical expenses;
(4) Child care, transportation and other reasonably
necessary expenses of the person related to employment; and
(5) The reasonably foreseeable consequences for the person
if a waiver of, or reduction in, the assessment is denied.
(b) Notwithstanding any provision of this code to the
contrary, any moneys collected pursuant to the provisions of
subsection (a) of this section shall be deposited in the state
treasury to the credit of the special revenue fund known as the
"Crime Victim's Compensation Fund".
NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to require convicted
felons to pay the costs of investigation of the crime as a
condition of sentence and release at the discretion of the court.
This section is new; therefore, strike-throughs and
underscoring have been omitted.