COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE

FOR


H. B. 2880


(By Delegates Hutchins, L. White, Amores, Hunt and Johnson)

(Originating in the Committee on the Judiciary)


[March 3, 1999]


A BILL to amend and reenact section four, article eight, chapter seventeen-a of the code of West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended, relating to the unlawful taking of a vehicle; providing that second or subsequent violations are felonies; and providing enhanced penalties for second and subsequent convictions.

Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That section four, article eight, chapter seventeen-a of the code of West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended, be amended and reenacted to read as follows:
ARTICLE 8. SPECIAL ANTITHEFT LAWS.
§17A-8-4. Unlawful taking of vehicle.

(a) Any person who drives a vehicle, not his or her own, without consent of the owner thereof, and with intent temporarily to deprive said owner of his or her possession of such vehicle, without intent to steal the same, is guilty of a misdemeanor. The consent of the owner of a vehicle to its taking or driving shall not in any case be presumed or implied because of such owner's consent on a previous occasion to the taking or driving of such vehicle by the same or a different person. Any person who assists in, or is a party or accessory to or an accomplice in any such unauthorized taking or driving, is guilty of a misdemeanor.
(b) Any person violating the provisions of this section is, for the first offense, guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction thereof, shall be fined not more than five hundred dollars, or confined in the county or regional jail not more than six months, or both; for the second offense, is guilty of a felony and, upon conviction thereof, shall be fined not more than three thousand dollars , or imprisoned in a state correctional facility for not less than one nor more than three years, or imprisoned in a regional jail for not more than one year, or both fined and imprisoned; for third or subsequent offenses, is guilty of a felony, and upon conviction thereof, shall be fined not more than five thousand dollars, or imprisoned in a state correctional facility for not less than one nor more than three years or both.

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