H. B. 4109
(By Delegate Warner)
[Introduced January 28, 1998; referred to the
Committee on Roads and Transportation then the
Judiciary.]
A BILL to amend and reenact section three, article four, chapter
seventeen-b of the code of West Virginia, one thousand nine
hundred thirty-one, as amended, relating to changing from
mandatory to discretionary the jail time for first offense
driving on a suspended or revoked license; and providing for
a separate administrative penalty for driving on a suspended
or revoked license, and a separate administrative penalty
for driving on a license which has been suspended for
driving under the influence of alcohol or controlled
substances, or for refusing to take a secondary chemical
test of the blood alcohol content.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That section three, article four, chapter seventeen-b of the
code of West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as
amended, be amended and reenacted to read as follows:
ARTICLE 4. VIOLATION OF LICENSE PROVISIONS.
§17B-4-3. Driving while license suspended or revoked; driving
while license revoked for driving under the
influence of alcohol, controlled substances or
drugs, or while having alcoholic concentration in
the blood of ten hundredths of one percent or more,
by weight, or for refusing to take secondary
chemical test of blood alcohol contents; penalties.
(a) Except as otherwise provided in subsection (b) or (d) of
this section, any person who drives a motor vehicle on any public
highway of this state at a time when his or her privilege to do
so has been lawfully suspended or revoked by this state or any
other jurisdiction shall, for the first offense, be guilty of a
misdemeanor and, upon conviction thereof, shall be confined in
jail for forty-eight hours and, in addition to such mandatory
jail sentence, shall be fined not less than fifty dollars nor
more than five hundred dollars, and in addition to the mandatory
fine, may be confined in jail not more than forty-eight hours;
for the second offense, such person is guilty of a misdemeanor
and, upon conviction thereof, shall be confined in jail for a
period of ten days and, in addition to such mandatory jail
sentence, shall be fined not less than one hundred dollars nor
more than five hundred dollars; for the third or any subsequent
offense, such person is guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction thereof, shall be confined in jail for six months and,
in addition to such mandatory jail sentence, shall be fined not
less than one hundred fifty dollars nor more than five hundred
dollars.
(b) Any person who drives a motor vehicle on any public
highway of this state at a time when his or her privilege to do
so has been lawfully revoked for driving under the influence of
alcohol, controlled substances or other drugs, or for driving
while having an alcoholic concentration in his or her blood of
ten hundredths of one percent or more, by weight, or for refusing
to take a secondary chemical test of blood alcohol content,
shall, for the first offense, be guilty of a misdemeanor and,
upon conviction thereof, shall be confined in jail for six months
and in addition to such mandatory jail sentence, shall be fined
not less than one hundred dollars nor more than five hundred
dollars; for the second offense, such person is guilty of a
misdemeanor and, upon conviction thereof, shall be confined in
jail for a period of one year and, in addition to such mandatory
jail sentence, shall be fined not less than one thousand dollars
nor more than three thousand dollars; for the third or any
subsequent offense, such person is guilty of a felony and, upon
conviction thereof, shall be imprisoned in the penitentiary for
not less than one year nor more than three years and, in addition
to such mandatory prison sentence, shall be fined not less than three thousand dollars nor more than five thousand dollars.
(c) Upon receiving a record of the conviction of any person
under subsection (a) or (b) of this section or a like municipal
ordinance upon a charge of driving a vehicle while the license of
such person was lawfully revoked or suspended, the division shall
extend the period of such suspension for an additional period of
one year thirty days from and after the date such person would
otherwise have been entitled to apply for a new license by
completing all requirements for reinstatement of a driver's
license.
(d) Upon receiving a record of the conviction of any person
under subsection (b) of this section or a like municipal
ordinance upon a charge of driving a vehicle while the license of
such person was lawfully revoked or suspended for driving under
the influence of alcohol, controlled substances or other drugs,
or for driving while having an alcoholic concentration in his or
her blood of ten hundredths of one percent or more, by weight, or
for refusing to take a secondary chemical test of the blood
alcohol content, the division shall extend the period of such
suspension or revocation for an additional one year from and
after the date such person would have otherwise been entitled to
apply for a new license by completing all requirements for
reinstatement of a driver's license.
(d) (e) Any person who drives a motor vehicle on any public highway of this state at a time when his or her privilege to do
so has been lawfully suspended for driving while under the age of
twenty-one years with an alcohol concentration in his or her
blood of two hundredths of one percent or more, by weight, but
less than ten hundredths of one percent, by weight, is guilty of
a misdemeanor and, upon conviction thereof, shall be confined in
jail for twenty-four hours or shall be fined not less than fifty
dollars nor more than five hundred dollars, or both.
(e) (f) An order for home detention by the court pursuant to
the provisions of article eleven-b, chapter sixty-two of this
code may be used as an alternative sentence to any period of
incarceration required by this section.
NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to change from mandatory
to discretionary the jail time for first offense driving on a
suspended or revoked license, and to provide for a separate
administrative penalty for driving on a suspended or revoked
license, and a separate administrative penalty for driving on a
license which has been suspended for driving under the influence
of alcohol or controlled substances, or for refusing to take a
secondary chemical test of the blood alcohol content.
Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken
from the present law, and underscoring indicates new language
that would be added.