Senate Bill No. 77
(By Senators Boley, Deem and Minear)
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[Introduced February 14, 2001; referred to the
Committee on the Judiciary; and then to the Committee on
Finance.]
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A BILL to amend article six-a, chapter forty-nine of the code of
West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as
amended, by adding thereto a new section, designated section
eleven, relating to the video and audio taping of any
interview of a child suspected of being neglected or abused.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That article six-a, chapter forty-nine of the code of West
Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended, be
amended by adding thereto a new section, designated section
eleven, to read as follows:
ARTICLE 6A. REPORTS OF CHILDREN SUSPECTED TO BE ABUSED OR NEGLECTED.
§49-6A-11. Video and audio taping of interviews of a child or
children suspected of being abused or neglected.
Any interview, including, but not limited to, an interview by
the court, of a child or children suspected of being abused or
neglected, shall be video and audio taped. These tapes shall be
made available to parents, guardians or custodians of the child
or children.
NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to ensure any interview
with a child or children suspected of being neglected or abused
is video and audio taped so that subsequent reviewers of such a
case can also determine the merits of the case.
This section is new; therefore, strike-throughs and
underscoring have been omitted.