H. B. 4027
(By Delegates Flanigan and Wills)
[Introduced January 14, 2002; referred to the
Committee on the Judiciary.]
A BILL to amend and reenact section nine, article two, chapter
sixty-one of the code of West Virginia, one thousand nine
hundred thirty-one, as amended, relating to the crimes of
malicious and unlawful wounding, assault and battery; and
providing criminal penalties.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That section nine, article two, chapter sixty-one of the code
of West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended,
be amended and reenacted to read as follows:
ARTICLE 2. CRIMES AGAINST THE PERSON.
§61-2-9. Malicious or unlawful wounding; assault; battery;
penalties.
(a) Any person who maliciously shoots, stabs, cuts or wounds any other person, or by any means causes another person bodily
injury with intent to maim, disfigure, disable or kill, is guilty
of the felony of malicious wounding and, upon conviction thereof,
shall be imprisoned in a state correctional facility not less than
two nor more than ten years. If the act is done unlawfully, but
not maliciously, with intent, the offender is guilty of the felony
of unlawful wounding and, upon conviction thereof, shall be fined
not more than five hundred dollars, confined in the county or
regional jail for not more than twelve months, or
imprisoned in a
state correctional facility for not less than one nor more than
five years, or both fined and imprisoned.
(b) Assault. -- Any person who unlawfully attempts to commit
a violent injury to the person of another or unlawfully commits an
act which places another in reasonable apprehension of immediately
receiving a violent injury, is guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon
conviction thereof, shall be fined not more than one hundred
dollars
, confined in the county or regional jail for not more than
six months, or both fined and imprisoned.
(c) Battery. -- Any person who unlawfully and intentionally
makes physical contact of an insulting or provoking nature with the
person of another or unlawfully and intentionally causes physical harm to another person, is guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon
conviction thereof, shall be fined not more than five hundred
dollars
, confined in the county or regional jail for not more than
twelve months, or both fined and imprisoned.
NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to clarify the designations
of the crimes of malicious or unlawful wounding, assault and
battery. Under the existing statute, malicious or unlawful
wounding is referred to as malicious or unlawful assault.
This section has been completely rewritten; therefore,
strike-throughs and underscoring have been omitted.