Introduced Version
House Bill 4353 History
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H. B. 4353
(By Delegates Staton, Amores, Craig and Ellem)
[Introduced February 2, 2006; referred to the Committee on
the Judiciary.]
A BILL to amend and reenact §17C-5A-1 of the Code of West
Virginia, 1931, as amended, relating to requiring law
enforcement officers have a valid complaint, signed by a
magistrate or municipal judge, with a showing of probable
cause before reporting said offense to the commissioner of the
department of motor vehicles.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That §17C-5A-1 of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended,
be amended and reenacted to read as follows:
17C-5A-1. Implied consent to administrative procedure;
revocation for driving under the influence of alcohol,
controlled substances or drugs or refusal to submit to secondary chemical test.
(a) Any person who is licensed to operate a motor vehicle in
this state and who drives a motor vehicle in this state shall be
deemed to have given his or her consent by the operation thereof,
subject to the provisions of this article, to the procedure set
forth in this article for the determination of whether his or her
license to operate a motor vehicle in this state should be revoked
because he or she did drive a motor vehicle while under the
influence of alcohol, controlled substances or drugs, or combined
influence of alcohol or controlled substances or drugs, or did
drive a motor vehicle while having an alcohol concentration in his
or her blood of eight hundredths of one percent or more, by weight,
or did refuse to submit to any designated secondary chemical test,
or did drive a motor vehicle while under the age of twenty-one
years with an alcohol concentration in his or her blood of two
hundredths of one percent or more, by weight, but less than eight
hundredths of one percent, by weight.
(b) Any law-enforcement officer arresting a person for an offense
described in section two, article five of this chapter or for an
offense described in a municipal ordinance which has the same
elements as an offense described in said section shall report to
the commissioner of the division of motor vehicles by written
statement within forty-eight hours the name and address of the
person so arrested. Provided, That the officer shall have a valid criminal complaint, signed by a magistrate or municipal judge, with
a determination of probable cause, before reporting said offense to
the commissioner of the department of motor vehicles. The report
shall include the specific offense with which the person is charged
and, if applicable, a copy of the results of any secondary tests of
blood, breath or urine. The signing of the statement required to be
signed by this subsection shall constitute an oath or affirmation
by the person signing the statement that the statements contained
therein are true and that any copy filed is a true copy. The
statement shall contain upon its face a warning to the officer
signing that to willfully sign a statement containing false
information concerning any matter or thing, material or not
material, is false swearing and is a misdemeanor.
(c) If, upon examination of the written statement of the officer
and the tests results described in subsection (b) of this section,
the commissioner shall determine that a person was arrested for an
offense described in section two, article five of this chapter or
for an offense described in a municipal ordinance which has the
same elements as an offense described in said section, and that the
results of any secondary test or tests indicate that at the time
the test or tests were administered the person had, in his or her
blood, an alcohol concentration of eight hundredths of one percent
or more, by weight, or at the time the person was arrested he or
she was under the influence of alcohol, controlled substances or drugs, the commissioner shall make and enter an order revoking the
person's license to operate a motor vehicle in this state. If the
results of the tests indicate that at the time the test or tests
were administered the person was under the age of twenty-one years
and had an alcohol concentration in his or her blood of two
hundredths of one percent or more, by weight, but less than eight
hundredths of one percent, by weight, the commissioner shall make
and enter an order suspending the person's license to operate a
motor vehicle in this state. A copy of the order shall be forwarded
to the person by registered or certified mail, return receipt
requested, and shall contain the reasons for the revocation or
suspension and describe the applicable revocation or suspension
periods provided for in section two of this article. No revocation
or suspension shall become effective until ten days after receipt
of a copy of the order.
(d) Any law-enforcement officer taking a child into custody under
the provisions of section six-a, article five of this chapter who
has reasonable cause to believe that the child, at the time of
driving the motor vehicle, had an alcohol concentration in his or
her blood of two hundredths of one percent or more, by weight, or
that the act of the child in driving the motor vehicle was such
that it would provide grounds for arrest for an offense defined
under the provisions of section two of said article if the child
were an adult, shall report to the commissioner of the division of motor vehicles by written statement within forty-eight hours the
name and address of the child.
(e) If applicable, the report shall include a description of the
specific offense with which the child could have been charged if
the child were an adult, and a copy of the results of any secondary
tests of blood, breath or urine. The signing of the statement
required to be signed by this subsection shall constitute an oath
or affirmation by the person signing such statement that the
statements contained therein are true and that any copy filed is a
true copy. Such statement shall contain upon its face a warning to
the officer signing that to willfully sign a statement containing
false information concerning any matter or thing, material or not
material, is false swearing and is a misdemeanor.
(f) Upon examination of the written statement of the officer and
any test results described in subsection (d) of this section, if
the commissioner determines that the results of the tests indicate
that at the time the test or tests were administered the child had,
in his or her blood, an alcohol concentration of two hundredths of
one percent or more, by weight, but also determines that the act of
the child in driving the motor vehicle was not such that it would
provide grounds for arrest for an offense defined under the
provisions of subsection (a), (b), (c), (d), (e), (f) or (g),
section two, article five of this chapter if the child were an
adult, the commissioner shall make and enter an order suspending the child's license to operate a motor vehicle in this state. If
the commissioner determines that the act of the child in driving
the motor vehicle was such that it would provide grounds for arrest
for an offense defined under the provisions of subsection (a), (b),
(c), (d), (e), (f) or (g), section two, article five of this
chapter if the child were an adult, the commissioner shall make and
enter an order revoking the child's license to operate a motor
vehicle in this state. A copy of such order shall be forwarded to
the child by registered or certified mail, return receipt
requested, and shall contain the reasons for the suspension or
revocation and describe the applicable suspension or revocation
periods provided for in section two of this article. No suspension
or revocation shall become effective until ten days after receipt
of a copy of such order.