H. B. 4646
(By Mr. Speaker, (Mr. Kiss) and Delegate Mahan)
[Introduced February 20, 2006; referred to the
Committee on the Judiciary.]
A BILL to amend and reenact §48-27-502 of the Code of West
Virginia, 1931, as amended; and to amend said code by adding
thereto a new section, designated §48-27-703, all relating to
providing for mandatory domestic violence education;
establishing a Domestic Violence Officer Program.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That §48-27-502 of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as
amended, be amended and reenacted; and that said code be amended by
adding thereto a new section, designated §48-27-703, all to read as
follows:
ARTICLE 27. PREVENTION AND TREATMENT OF DOMESTIC VIOLENCE.
§48-27-502. Mandatory provisions in protective order.
(a) A protective order must order the respondent to refrain
from abusing, harassing, stalking, threatening or otherwise intimidating the petitioner or the minor children, or engaging in
other conduct that would place the petitioner or the minor children
in reasonable fear of bodily injury.
(b) The protective order must inform the respondent that he or
she is prohibited from possessing any firearm or ammunition,
notwithstanding the fact that the respondent may have a valid
license to possess a firearm, and that possession of a firearm or
ammunition while subject to the court's protective order is a
criminal offense under federal law.
(c) The protective order must inform the respondent that the
order is in full force and effect in every county of this state.
(d) A protective order shall order the respondent to attend
and complete the nearest batterer intervention prevention program.
The protective order shall inform the respondent that failure to
attend and complete the program shall result in the forfeiture of
respondent's driver's license. If respondent does not possess a
valid driver's license, respondent shall be fined five-hundred
dollars for failure to attend and complete the program. One-half
of the fine shall be dispersed to the support group fund of the
batterer intervention prevention program which the respondent was
ordered to attend; the other half shall be dispersed to the nearest
women's resource center support group fund.
(e) A protective order must order the victim to attend and
complete a minimum of four consecutive support program group sessions with the nearest women's resource center. The protective
order shall inform the victim that failure to attend and complete
four consecutive program sessions shall result in a fine of fifty
dollars. The fine moneys shall be divided and dispersed equally
between the support group fund of the women's resource center that
the victim was ordered to attend, and the support group fund of the
nearest batterer intervention prevention program.
(d) (e) A protective order must contain on its face the
following statement, printed in bold-faced type or in capital
letters:
"VIOLATION OF THIS ORDER MAY BE PUNISHED BY CONFINEMENT IN A
REGIONAL OR COUNTY JAIL FOR AS LONG AS ONE YEAR AND BY A FINE OF AS
MUCH AS TWO THOUSAND DOLLARS".
§48-27-703. Domestic Violence Officer Program.
In and for each county in the state a law-enforcement officer
shall be specifically trained in domestic violence. The officer
shall be required to make at least two physical visits to the
batterrer and one successful phone contact. The officer shall make
one physical visit to the victim and two successful phone contacts.
On every physical visit to a batterer or victim the domestic
violence officer shall take with him or her, and be familiar with,
the relevant domestic violence protective order filed in that
officer's responsible county. The funding for the Domestic
Violence Officer Program may be accomplished through programs provided by the Department of Justice's Office on Violence Against
Women.
NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to provide for mandatory
domestic violence education for both batterers and victims; and to
establish a Domestic Violence Officer Program.
Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken from
the present law, and underscoring indicates new language that would
be added.
§48-27-703
is new; therefore, strike-throughs and underscoring
have been omitted.
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