COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE
FOR
H. B. 2415
(By Delegates D. Poling, Swartzmiller and Manypenny)
(Originating in the House Committee on the Judiciary)
[March 26, 2009]
A BILL to amend the code of West Virginia,1931, as amended, by
adding thereto a new section, designated §60A-4-412,
relating to establishing that possession of a mixture or
preparation intended for human consumption containing salvia
divinorum is unlawful; and creating criminal penalties.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That §60A-4-412 of the Code of West Virginia,1931, be amended,
by adding thereto a new section, designated §60A-4-412, to read as
follows:
§60A-4-412. Unlawful production, manufacture, distribution or
possession of salvia divinorum
.
(a) For purposes of this section, "salvia divinorum" shall
meanan herb coming from the Lamiaceae family, genus of salvia,
species of divinorum, with common names including, but not limited
to
Ska Pastora, Shepherdess's Herb, Maria Pastora, yerba de Maria,
purple sticky, and Sally-D
(b) It is unlawful for any person to knowingly or
intentionally possess a material, compound, mixture or preparation
intended for human consumption which contains salvia divinorum
,
unless the substance was obtained directly from, or pursuant to a
valid prescription or order of a practitioner while acting in the
courts of his or her professional practice, or except as otherwise
authorized by this act. Any person who violates this subsection is
guilty of a misdemeanor, and disposition may be made under section
four hundred seven of this article, subject to the limitations
specified in said section, or upon conviction, such person may be
confined in jail not less than ninety days nor more than six
months, or fined not more than one thousand dollars, or both.
Notwithstanding any other provision of this code to the contrary,
any first offense for possession of salvia divinorum shall be
disposed of under section four hundred seven of this article
.
(c) The provisions of this section shall not apply to usage
for medical reasons if approved by an institutional review board
of an institution in the state which has a multiple project
assurance contract approved by the office of protection from
research risks of the national institutes of health.