Senate Bill No. 372
(By Senators Unger, Prezioso, Jenkins, Smith and Plymale)
____________
[Introduced January 28, 2003; referred to the Committee on the
Judiciary.]
____________
A BILL to amend and reenact section thirteen, article two, chapter
fifteen of the code of West Virginia, one thousand nine
hundred thirty-one, as amended, relating to
allowing members
of the state police to engage in political activities while
out of uniform and off duty.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That section thirteen, article two, chapter fifteen of the
code of West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as
amended, be amended and reenacted to read as follows:
ARTICLE 2. WEST VIRGINIA STATE POLICE.
§15-2-13. Limitations upon members.
No member of the department of public safety West Virginia
state police may in any way interfere with the rights or property
of any person except for the prevention of crime.
Except when a member of the state police is off duty and out of uniform,
no member of the department of public safety West
Virginia state police
may in any way become active or take part in
any political contest or at any time participate in any political
party caucus, committee, primary, assembly or convention, or in any
general or special election, except to cast his or her ballot.
No member of the department of public safety West Virginia
state police
may be detailed or ordered to duty at or near any
voting precinct where any election or convention is held on the day
of such an election or convention; nor shall any member thereof
remain in, about or near such the voting precinct or place of
convention, except to cast his or her
vote. After voting he or she
shall forthwith retire from such the
voting precinct. No member of
the department may act as an election official. If any member of
the department of public safety West Virginia state police
is found
guilty of violating any of the provisions of this section he or she
shall be dismissed from the department by the superintendent as
hereinafter provided.
No officer or member of the department of public safety West
Virginia state police
may, in any labor trouble or dispute between
employer and employee, aid or assist either party thereto, but
shall in such these cases see that the statutes and laws of this
state are enforced in a legal way and manner.
NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to allow members of the
state police to engage in political activities while the member is
out of uniform and off duty.
Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken from
the present law, and underscoring indicates new language that would
be added.