reglab/statecodes huggingface dataset:
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 8. Municipal Corporations › Article 14. Law and Order; Police Force or Departments; Powers, Authority and Duties of Law-Enforcement Officials and Policemen; Police Matrons; Special School Zone and Parking Lot or Parking Building Police Officers; Civil Service for Certain Police Departments › §8-14-6. Qualifications for Appointment or Promotion to Positions in Certain Paid Police Departments to Be Ascertained by Examination; Provisions Exclusive as to Appointments, etc.; Definitions

§8-14-6. Qualifications for appointment or promotion to positions in certain paid police departments to be ascertained by examination; provisions exclusive as to appointments, etc.; definitions.
(a) All appointments and promotions to all positions in all paid police departments of Class I and Class II cities shall be made only according to qualifications and fitness to be ascertained by examinations, which, so far as practicable, shall be competitive, as hereinafter provided.
(b) No individual, except the chief or deputy chiefs of police, if the position of deputy chief of police has been previously created by the city council of that Class I or Class II city, may be appointed, promoted, reinstated, removed, discharged, suspended or reduced in rank or pay as a paid member of a paid police department, regardless of rank or position, of any Class I or Class II city in any manner or by any means other than those prescribed in the following sections of this article: Provided, That an individual appointed chief or deputy chief of police who held a position as a member of a paid police department in that police department before the appointment as chief or deputy chief of police shall be reinstated to the officer's previous rank following his or her term as chief or deputy chief of police.
(c) The term "member of a paid police department", whenever used in the following sections of this article, means an individual employed in a paid police department who is clothed with the police power of the state in being authorized to carry deadly weapons, make arrests, enforce traffic and other municipal ordinances, issue summons for violations of traffic and other municipal ordinances, and perform other duties which are within the scope of active, general law enforcement.
(d) The term "appointing officer", as used in the following sections of this article, means the Class I or Class II city officer in whom the power of appointment of members of a paid police department is vested by charter provision or ordinance of the city.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 8. Municipal Corporations › Article 14. Law and Order; Police Force or Departments; Powers, Authority and Duties of Law-Enforcement Officials and Policemen; Police Matrons; Special School Zone and Parking Lot or Parking Building Police Officers; Civil Service for Certain Police Departments › §8-14-8. Recorder Ex Officio Clerk of Commission; Clerical and Stenographic Services

The recorder of the city shall be ex officio clerk of the policemen's civil service commission and shall supply to the commission without extra compensation all necessary clerical and stenographic services for the work of the commission.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 8. Municipal Corporations › Article 14. Law and Order; Police Force or Departments; Powers, Authority and Duties of Law-Enforcement Officials and Policemen; Police Matrons; Special School Zone and Parking Lot or Parking Building Police Officers; Civil Service for Certain Police Departments › §8-14-9. Rooms, Stationery, etc., to Be Furnished by City; Appropriations Required

It shall be the duty of the mayor and the heads of the departments of government of every Class I and Class II city having a paid police department to cause suitable and convenient rooms and accommodations to be assigned and provided, furnished, heated and lighted for carrying on the work and examinations of the commission. The commission may order from the proper authorities the necessary stationery, postage stamps, official seal and other articles to be supplied, and the necessary printing to be done, for its official use. It shall be the duty of the officers of every such city to aid the commission in all proper ways in carrying out the civil service provisions of this article, and to allow the reasonable use of public buildings, and to heat and light the same, for holding examinations and investigations, and in all proper ways to facilitate the same.
All Class I and Class II cities subject to the civil service provisions of this article are hereby required to appropriate sufficient funds for the purpose of carrying out such provisions.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 8. Municipal Corporations › Article 14. Law and Order; Police Force or Departments; Powers, Authority and Duties of Law-Enforcement Officials and Policemen; Police Matrons; Special School Zone and Parking Lot or Parking Building Police Officers; Civil Service for Certain Police Departments › §8-14-11. Rules and Regulations for All Examinations; Probationary Appointments

The policemen's civil service commission in each Class I and Class II city shall make rules and regulations providing for both competitive and medical examinations for appointments and promotions to all positions in the paid police department in such city, and for such other matters as are necessary to carry out the purposes of the civil service provisions of this article. Any such commission shall have the power and authority to require by rules and regulations a physical fitness examination as a part of its competitive examination or as a part of its medical examination: Provided, That after June 30, 1981, the medical requirements for appointment to all positions in the paid police department in such city shall include, but not be limited to, the medical requirements stated in section sixteen, article twenty-two of this chapter. Due notice of the contents of all such rules and regulations and of any modifications thereof shall be given, by mail, in due season, to the appointing officer; and said rules and regulations and any modifications thereof shall also be printed for public distribution. All original appointments to any positions in a paid police department subject to the civil service provisions of this article shall be for a probationary period of one year: Provided, That at any time during the probationary period the probationer may be discharged for just cause, in the manner provided in section twenty of this article. If, at the close of this probationary term, the conduct or capacity of the probationer has not been satisfactory to the appointing officer, the probationer shall be notified, in writing, that he will not receive absolute appointment, whereupon his employment shall cease; otherwise, his retention in the service shall be equivalent to his final appointment.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 8. Municipal Corporations › Article 14. Law and Order; Police Force or Departments; Powers, Authority and Duties of Law-Enforcement Officials and Policemen; Police Matrons; Special School Zone and Parking Lot or Parking Building Police Officers; Civil Service for Certain Police Departments › §8-14-12. Form of Application; Age and Residency Requirements; Exceptions

(a) The policemens civil service commission in each Class I and Class II city shall require a person applying for admission to any competitive examination provided under the civil service provisions of this article or under the commissions rules to file in its office, within a reasonable time prior to the proposed examination, a formal application in which the applicant shall state under oath or affirmation:
(1) The applicants full name, residence, and post-office address;
(2) The applicants United States citizenship, age, and the place and date of the applicants birth;
(3) The applicants state of health and the applicants physical capacity for the public service;
(4) The applicants business and employments and residences for at least three previous years; and
(5) Other information as may reasonably be required, touching upon the applicants qualifications and fitness for the public service.
(b) Applications shall be furnished by the commission, without charge. The commission may require, in connection with the application, the certificates of citizens, physicians, and others, having pertinent knowledge concerning the applicant, as the good of the service may require.
(c) Notwithstanding the provisions of 11-5-1
et seq.
of this code, a person may not submit an application for original appointment if the person is less than 18 years of age or more than 40 years of age at the date of the individuals application.
(d) Notwithstanding the requirements established in this section, if an applicant: (1) Formerly served upon the paid police department of the city to which he or she makes application, for a period of more than his or her probationary period; (2) resigned from the department at a time when there were no charges of misconduct or other misfeasance pending against the applicant; and (3) applies for appointment by reinstatement within a period of two years from the date of resignation from the paid police department to which the individual seeks appointment by reinstatement, then the individual is eligible for appointment by reinstatement in the discretion of the policemens civil service commission. The applicant may be over the age of 40 years. The applicant, providing his or her former term of service so justifies, may be appointed by reinstatement to the paid police department without a competitive examination, but the applicant shall undergo a medical examination. The applicant shall be the lowest in rank in the department next above the probationers of the department.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 8. Municipal Corporations › Article 14. Law and Order; Police Force or Departments; Powers, Authority and Duties of Law-Enforcement Officials and Policemen; Police Matrons; Special School Zone and Parking Lot or Parking Building Police Officers; Civil Service for Certain Police Departments › §8-14-13. Character and Notice of Competitive Examinations; Qualifications of Applicants; Press Representatives; Posting Eligible List; Medical Examinations

All competitive examinations for appointments or promotions to all positions shall be practical in their character, and shall relate to such matters, and include such inquiries, as will fairly and fully test the comparative merit and fitness of the individual or individuals examined to discharge the duties of the employment sought by him or them. All competitive examinations shall be open to all applicants who have fulfilled the preliminary requirements specified in the other civil service provisions of this article.
Adequate public notice of the date, time and place of every competitive examination together with information as to the kind of position to be filled, shall be given at least one week prior to such competitive examination. The said commission shall adopt reasonable rules and regulations for permitting the presence of representatives of the press at any such competitive examination. The commission shall post, in a public place at its office, the eligible list, containing the names and grades of those who have passed such competitive examinations for positions in the paid police department, and shall indicate thereon such appointments as may be made from said list.
All applicants for appointment or promotion to any position in a paid police department of a Class I or Class II city who have passed the competitive examination specified above shall, before being appointed or promoted, undergo a medical examination which shall be conducted under the supervision of a board composed of two doctors of medicine appointed for such purpose by the appointing officer of the city. Such board must certify that an applicant is free from any bodily or mental defects, deformity or diseases which might incapacitate him from the performance of the duties of the position desired and is physically fit to perform such duties before said applicant shall be appointed or promoted to any position. Notwithstanding the first sentence of this paragraph, in the event the commission deems it expedient, the medical examination may be given prior to the competitive examination, and if the medical examination is not passed as aforesaid, the applicant shall not be admitted to the competitive examination.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 8. Municipal Corporations › Article 14. Law and Order; Police Force or Departments; Powers, Authority and Duties of Law-Enforcement Officials and Policemen; Police Matrons; Special School Zone and Parking Lot or Parking Building Police Officers; Civil Service for Certain Police Departments › §8-14-13a. Individual Review of Test and Answers From Promotional Examination

(a) Any applicant for promotion to any position in a paid police department may personally review such applicant's examination questions, answers and scores to all parts of any competitive examination within five days after the posting of results of the competitive examination. Such five days shall not include the day the examination results are posted, nor any day that the office of the recorder of the city is not open for business to the public. The commission shall not certify the list of eligibles until all procedures before the commission under this section have been exhausted. The commission shall provide any applicant requesting review of such applicant's examination questions, answers and scores with a location to review such materials.
(b) If any applicant feels aggrieved by the answers and/or scores received on a promotional competitive examination, the commission shall, at the request of such applicant made within five days as calculated above, appoint a date, time and place for a public hearing, at which time such applicant may appear, with or without counsel. The commission shall review all parts of the competitive examination questions, answers and scores of the aggrieved applicant, and testimony shall be taken.
The commission shall subpoena, at the expense of the applicant, any competent witnesses requested by such applicant.
(c) After such review, the commission shall render a decision either in favor of the applicant, and therefore adjust the certified eligibility list to provide for such applicant's adjusted score, or the commission shall rule that the applicant's prior score should remain unchanged. Any decision rendered by the commission under this section shall be in writing and shall set forth findings of fact and conclusions of law relied upon to reach such decision.
(d) The commission shall not certify a list of eligibles after the completion of a competitive promotional examination until all applicants for such position have exhausted the procedures before the commission set forth in this section.
(e) If any applicant is aggrieved by a decision rendered by the commission under this section, such applicant may, within twenty days of the date of the commission's decision, seek judicial review thereof in the circuit court of the county wherein such municipality is located. Nothing in this section shall be construed as depriving such applicant of the right to seek a writ of mandamus to the appropriate court within the time specified in this subsection.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 8. Municipal Corporations › Article 14. Law and Order; Police Force or Departments; Powers, Authority and Duties of Law-Enforcement Officials and Policemen; Police Matrons; Special School Zone and Parking Lot or Parking Building Police Officers; Civil Service for Certain Police Departments › §8-14-14. Refusal to Examine or Certify; Review Thereof

The commission may refuse to examine an applicant, or after examination to certify as eligible one, who is found to lack any of the established preliminary requirements for the examination or position for which he applies; or who is physically so disabled as to be rendered unfit for the performance of the duties of the position desired; or who is addicted to the habitual use of intoxicating liquors or drugs; or who has been guilty of any crime or of infamous or notoriously disgraceful conduct; or who has been dismissed from public service for delinquency or misconduct; or who has made a false statement of any material fact, or practiced or attempted to practice any deception or fraud, in his application, in any such examination, or in securing his eligibility; or who refuses to comply with the rules and regulations of the commission.
If any applicant feels aggrieved by the action of the commission in refusing to examine him, or after examination in refusing to certify him as eligible, the commission shall, at the request of such applicant, appoint a date, time and place for a public hearing; at which time such applicant may appear, by himself or counsel, or both, and the commission shall then review its refusal to make such examination or certification, and testimony shall be taken. The commission shall subpoena, at the expense of the applicant, any competent witnesses requested by him. After such review, the commission shall file in its records the testimony taken and shall again make a decision, which decision shall be final and not subject to judicial review, but under no circumstances shall the provisions of this article be construed, in the case of a refusal to examine an applicant for promotion or to certify an applicant as eligible for promotion, as depriving such applicant of his right to seek a writ of mandamus, if the application for such writ is made within twenty days from the date of the decision refusing to examine or to certify him as eligible for promotion.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 8. Municipal Corporations › Article 14. Law and Order; Police Force or Departments; Powers, Authority and Duties of Law-Enforcement Officials and Policemen; Police Matrons; Special School Zone and Parking Lot or Parking Building Police Officers; Civil Service for Certain Police Departments › §8-14-15. Appointments From List of Eligibles

Every position, unless filled by promotion, reinstatement or reduction, shall be filled only in the manner specified in this section. The appointing officer shall notify the policemens Civil Service Commission of any vacancy or vacancies in a position or positions which he or she desires to fill and shall request the certification of eligibles. The commission shall forthwith certify the names of at least one but no more than three eligible individuals ranked according to their averages at preceding competitive examinations held under the civil service provisions of this article within a period of three years next preceding the date of the prospective appointment. The appointing officer shall, thereupon, with sole reference to the relative merit and fitness of the candidates, make an appointment or appointments from the names so certified:
Provided
, That should he make objection, to the commission, to one or more of these individuals, for any of the reasons stated in section fourteen of this article, and should such objection be sustained by the commission, after a public hearing along the lines of the hearing provided for in said section fourteen of this article, if any such hearing is requested, the commission shall thereupon strike the name of any such individual from the eligible list, and certify the next highest name for each individual so stricken. As each subsequent vacancy occurs, in the same or another position, precisely the same procedure shall be followed:
Provided, however,
That after any name has been three times rejected for the same or another position in favor of a name or names below it on the same list, the said name shall be stricken from the list. When there are a number of positions of the same kind to be filled at the same time, each appointment shall, nevertheless, be made separately and in accordance with the foregoing provisions. When an appointment is made under the provisions of this section it shall be, in the first instance, for the probationary period of one year, as provided in 8-14-11 of this code.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 8. Municipal Corporations › Article 14. Law and Order; Police Force or Departments; Powers, Authority and Duties of Law-Enforcement Officials and Policemen; Police Matrons; Special School Zone and Parking Lot or Parking Building Police Officers; Civil Service for Certain Police Departments › §8-14-15a. Veteran Qualification for Examinations Required During Probation Period

(a) Any person who has served on active duty in the Armed Forces of the United States, was honorably discharged from that service, and who has successfully completed the course of instruction required to qualify him or her for rating as a military police officer, law-enforcement specialist or other equivalent rating in his or her particular branch of the Armed Forces, may submit to the Civil Service Commission a photostatic copy of the certificate issued to him or her certifying successful completion of such course of instruction and a photostatic copy of his or her discharge from the Armed Forces. The Civil Service Commission shall allow, upon request of the veteran, that he or she be permitted to take any examinations required during the probationary period without first having to complete a training course for that subject: Provided, That if the veteran does not pass the examination or examinations, he or she may be subject to the same reexamination requirements of persons who have not applied under the provisions of this section.
(b) A veteran wishing to utilize the provisions of section (a) must have first met the requirements contained in §8-14-12 and §8-14-13 of this code.
(c) The veteran must successfully pass all examinations and any other requirements of his or her probation period, to be eligible for absolute appointment.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 8. Municipal Corporations › Article 14. Law and Order; Police Force or Departments; Powers, Authority and Duties of Law-Enforcement Officials and Policemen; Police Matrons; Special School Zone and Parking Lot or Parking Building Police Officers; Civil Service for Certain Police Departments › §8-14-16. Noncompetitive Examination for Filling Vacancy; Provisional Appointment

Whenever there are urgent reasons for filling a vacancy in any position in a paid police department of a Class I or Class II city and there is no list of individuals eligible for appointment after a competitive examination, the appointing officer may nominate an individual to the policemen's civil service commission for noncompetitive examination; and if such nominee shall be certified by the said commission as qualified, after such noncompetitive examination and a medical examination, he may be appointed provisionally, to fill such vacancy until a selection and appointment can be made after competitive examination, in the manner prescribed in section fifteen of this article; but such provisional appointment shall not continue for a longer period than three months, nor shall successive provisional appointments be made to the same position, under the provisions of this section.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 8. Municipal Corporations › Article 14. Law and Order; Police Force or Departments; Powers, Authority and Duties of Law-Enforcement Officials and Policemen; Police Matrons; Special School Zone and Parking Lot or Parking Building Police Officers; Civil Service for Certain Police Departments › §8-14-17. Vacancies Filled by Promotions; Eligibility for Promotion; Rights of Chief

(a) Vacancies in positions in a paid police department of a Class I or Class II city shall be filled, so far as practicable, by promotions from among individuals holding positions in the next lower grade in the department.
(b) Promotions shall be based upon experience and by written competitive examinations to be provided by the Policemen's Civil Service Commission: Provided, That except for the chief or deputy chiefs of police, if the position of deputy chief of police has been previously created by the city council of that Class I or Class II city, no individual is eligible for promotion from the lower grade to the next higher grade until the individual has completed at least two years of continuous service in the next lower grade in the department immediately prior to the examination: Provided, however, That notwithstanding the provisions of section six of this article, any member of a paid police department of a Class I or Class II city now occupying the office of chief or deputy chief of police of that paid police department, or hereafter appointed to the office of chief or deputy chief of police, except as hereinafter provided in this section, is entitled to all of the rights and benefits of the civil service provisions of this article, except that he or she may be removed from the office of chief or deputy chief of police without cause, and the time spent by the member in the office of chief or deputy chief of police shall be added to the time served by the member during the entire time he or she was a member of that paid police department prior to his or her appointment as chief or deputy chief of police, and shall in all cases of removal, except for removal for good cause, retain the regular rank within that paid police department which he or she held at the time of his or her appointment to the office of chief or deputy chief of police or which he or she has attained during his or her term of service as chief or deputy chief of police.
(c) The provisions of this section apply and inure to the benefit of all individuals who have ever been subject to the provisions of this article. The commission may determine in each instance whether an increase in salary constitutes a promotion.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 8. Municipal Corporations › Article 14. Law and Order; Police Force or Departments; Powers, Authority and Duties of Law-Enforcement Officials and Policemen; Police Matrons; Special School Zone and Parking Lot or Parking Building Police Officers; Civil Service for Certain Police Departments › §8-14-18. No Inquiry Shall Be Made Concerning Political or Religious Opinions or Affiliations of Applicants, etc.

No question in any form of application or in or during any examination shall be so framed as to elicit information concerning the political or religious opinions or affiliations of any applicant; nor shall inquiry be made concerning such opinions or affiliations; and all disclosures thereof shall be discountenanced. No discrimination shall be exercised, threatened or promised by any individual in a paid police department of a Class I or Class II city against, or in favor of, an applicant, eligible, or member of such a paid police department because of his political or religious opinions or affiliations.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 8. Municipal Corporations › Article 14. Law and Order; Police Force or Departments; Powers, Authority and Duties of Law-Enforcement Officials and Policemen; Police Matrons; Special School Zone and Parking Lot or Parking Building Police Officers; Civil Service for Certain Police Departments › §8-14-21. Election to Determine if Civil Service Provisions of Article Shall Apply to Class III City or Class IV Town or Village; Existing Police Civil Service Not Affected; Certain Regular Members Automatically Covered

Any Class III city or Class IV town or village having a paid police department and which has not prior to the effective date of this article established a police civil service system, may, by ordinance, provide for an election to determine whether the civil service provisions of this article shall apply to such city, town or village. Such election shall be held at the first regular municipal or general election held therein after the adoption of said ordinance and shall be conducted and the results thereof ascertained as provided by law for other elections. The ballots, or ballot labels where voting machines are used, shall have printed thereon:
/ For Police Civil Service
/ Against Police Civil Service
If a majority of all of the legal votes cast on this question be against police civil service, then none of the civil service provisions of this article shall apply within such city, town or village. If a majority of all of the legal votes cast on this question be for police civil service, then all of the civil service provisions of this article shall apply within such city, town or village with like effect as if such Class III city or Class IV town or village where a Class I or Class II city: Provided, That all members of the paid police department of such city, town or village who were so employed by such city, town or village on the date of the election and who, as of such date, have had four or more years' service as members of any paid police department (including the years any member occupied the office of chief of any such paid police department) shall be considered to have been appointed as members under the civil service provisions of this article and shall hold their positions as members in accordance therewith. All members of the paid police department of such city, town or village who do not have, as of the date of such election, four or more years' service as members of a paid police department (including the years any member occupied the office of chief of any such paid police department) shall be subject to all examinations provided for in the civil service provisions of this article for members, except that if any such individual has sustained an injury or injuries in the line of duty while in police service, such injury or injuries shall not disqualify such individual under the medical examination required under the civil service provisions of this article.
The provisions of this section shall not apply to any such city, town or village operating under police civil service on the effective date of this article.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 8. Municipal Corporations › Article 14. Law and Order; Police Force or Departments; Powers, Authority and Duties of Law-Enforcement Officials and Policemen; Police Matrons; Special School Zone and Parking Lot or Parking Building Police Officers; Civil Service for Certain Police Departments › §8-14-22. Offenses and Penalties

Any individual who makes an appointment or promotion to any position, or selects an individual for employment, contrary to the civil service provisions of this article, or wilfully refuses or neglects otherwise to comply with, or to conform to, any of the civil service provisions of this article, or violates any of such provisions, shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor.
Any commissioner or examiner, or any other individual, who shall wilfully, by himself or in cooperation with one or more persons, defeat, deceive or obstruct any individual with respect to his right of examination or registration according to the civil service provisions of this article, or to any rules and regulations prescribed pursuant thereto, or who shall wilfully or corruptly, falsely mark, grade, estimate, or report upon any such examination or proper standing of any individual so examined, registered or certified, pursuant to the civil service provisions of this article, or aid in so doing, or who shall wilfully or corruptly furnish to any individual any special or secret information, for the purpose of either improving or injuring the prospects or chances of appointment or promotion to any position of any individual so examined, registered or certified, or to be so examined, registered or certified, or who shall impersonate any other individual, or permit or aid in any manner any other individual to impersonate him, in connection with any such examination or registration, or application or request to be examined or registered, shall, for each offense, be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor.
Any person convicted of any such misdemeanor offense shall be punished by a fine of not less than $50, nor more than $1,000, or by imprisonment for a term not exceeding one year, or by both such fine and imprisonment, in the discretion of the court.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 8. Municipal Corporations › Article 14. Law and Order; Police Force or Departments; Powers, Authority and Duties of Law-Enforcement Officials and Policemen; Police Matrons; Special School Zone and Parking Lot or Parking Building Police Officers; Civil Service for Certain Police Departments › §8-14-24. Right to Receive Complete Standard Uniform; Right to Acquire Badge; and Right to Keep Service Weapon

(a) A police officer, upon honorable retirement, is authorized to maintain at his or her own cost a complete standard uniform from the law-enforcement agency of which he or she was a member and shall be issued an identification card indicating his or her honorable retirement from the law-enforcement agency. The uniform may be worn by the officer in retirement only on the following occasions: Police Officer's Memorial Day, Law-Enforcement Appreciation Day, at the funeral of a law-enforcement officer or during any other police ceremony. The honorably retired officer is authorized to acquire a badge of the law-enforcement agency from which he or she is retired with the word "retired" placed on it.
(b) Upon retirement, a police officer is entitled to keep, without charge, his or her service weapon after a determination by the chief of police:
(1) That the police officer is retiring honorably with at least twenty years of recognized law-enforcement service; or
(2) That the police officer is retiring with less than twenty years of service and that he or she is totally physically disabled as a result of service as a police officer.
(c) Notwithstanding the provisions of subsection (b) of this section, the chief of police may not award a service weapon to any police officer who has been declared mentally incompetent by a licensed physician or a court of law, or who, in the opinion of the chief of police, constitutes a danger to any person or the community.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 8. Municipal Corporations › Article 14A. Municipal Police Officers and Firemen; Procedure for Investigation › §8-14A-2. Investigation and Interrogation of a Police Officer or Fireman

When any police officer or fireman is under investigation and subjected to interrogation by his commanding officer, or any other member of the employing police or fire department, which could lead to punitive action, such interrogation shall be conducted under the following conditions:
(1) The interrogation shall be conducted at a reasonable hour, preferably at a time when the police officer or fireman is on duty, or during his normal working hours, unless the seriousness of the investigation requires otherwise. If such interrogation does occur during off-duty time of the police officer or fireman being interrogated at any place other than his residence, such officer or fireman shall be compensated for such off-duty time in accordance with regular department procedure. If the interrogation of the police officer or fireman occurs during his regular duty hours, such officer or fireman shall not be released from employment for any work missed due to interrogation.
(2) Any police officer or fireman under investigation shall be informed of the nature of the investigation prior to any interrogation. Such officer shall also be informed of the name, rank and command of the officer in charge of the interrogation, the interrogating officers, and all other persons to be present during the interrogation. No more than three interrogators at one time shall question the officer or fireman under investigation.
(3) No police officer or fireman under interrogation shall be subjected to offensive language or threatened with punitive action. No promise of reward shall be made as an inducement to answering questions.
(4) The complete interrogation of any police officer or fireman shall be recorded, either written, taped or transcribed. Upon request of the law-enforcement officer or fireman under investigation or his counsel, and upon advance payment of the reasonable cost thereof a copy of the record shall be made available to him not less than ten days prior to any hearing.
(5) Upon the filing of a formal written statement of charges or whenever an interrogation focuses on matters which are likely to result in punitive action against any police officer or fireman, then that officer or fireman shall have the right to be represented by counsel who may be present at all times during such interrogation.
Nothing herein shall prohibit the immediate temporary suspension, pending an investigation, from duty of any police officer or fireman who reports for duty under the influence of alcohol or controlled substances which would prevent the officer or fireman from performing his duties as defined in chapter sixty-a of this code, or under the influence of an apparent mental or emotional disorder.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 8. Municipal Corporations › Article 14A. Municipal Police Officers and Firemen; Procedure for Investigation › §8-14A-3. Hearing

(a) Before taking any punitive action against an accused officer, the police or fire department shall give notice to the accused officer that he or she is entitled to a hearing on the issues by a hearing board or the applicable civil service commission. The notice shall state the time and place of the hearing and the issues involved and shall be delivered to the accused officer no later than ten days prior to the hearing.
(b) When a civil service accused officer faces a recommended punitive action of discharge, suspension or reduction in rank or pay, but before such punitive action is taken, a hearing board must be appointed and must afford the accused civil service officer a hearing conducted pursuant to the provisions of article fourteen, section twenty, or article fifteen, section twenty-five of this chapter: Provided, That the punitive action may be taken before the hearing board conducts the hearing if exigent circumstances exist which require it.
(c) When a civil service accused officer faces a recommended punitive action of written reprimand or transfer for the purpose of punishment, or when a noncivil service accused officer faces any recommended punitive action, the applicable hearing board shall conduct hearing pursuant to the provisions of subsection (d) of this section.
(d) The following requirements shall govern the operation conduct of a hearing board under subsection (c) of this section:
(1) The hearing board shall keep an official record of each hearing it conducts. The official record shall include the testimony offered and exhibits introduced at the hearing.
(2) Both the police or fire department and the accused officer shall be given ample opportunity to present evidence and argument with respect to any issue raised at the hearing.
(3) The hearing board may subpoena witnesses and administer oaths or affirmations and examine any individual under oath, and may require and compel the production of records, books, papers, contracts and other documents, in connection with any issue raised at the hearing.
(4) The hearing board shall prepare a written order detailing any decision or action it takes as a result of the hearing. The written order shall include written findings of fact setting forth a concise statement of the hearing board's factual findings and conclusions on each issue raised at the hearing. The hearing board shall hand-deliver or promptly mail a copy of the written order to the accused officer or his attorney of record.
(e) A hearing board's order is binding on all parties involved unless it is overturned in the appeal process described in section five of this article.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 8. Municipal Corporations › Article 14A. Municipal Police Officers and Firemen; Procedure for Investigation › §8-14A-4. Right to Refuse to Disclose Personal Finances; Exceptions

No police officer or fireman shall be required or requested for purposes of job assignment or other personnel action to disclose any item of his property, income, assets, source of income, debts or personal or domestic expenditures unless such information is obtained through proper legal procedures or is necessary for the employing agency to ascertain the desirability of assigning the police officer to a specialized unit in which there is a strong possibility that bribes or other improper inducements might be offered.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 8. Municipal Corporations › Article 14A. Municipal Police Officers and Firemen; Procedure for Investigation › §8-14A-5. Appeal

(a) For civil service departments, a hearing board's decision rendered under subsection (b) or (c), section three of this article may be appealed by the police officer or firefighter adversely affected by the order or by the department chief if he or she believes that the department would be adversely affected by the hearing board's order. An appeal under this subsection shall be made to the applicable civil service commission. Any party aggrieved by the civil service commission's ruling on the appeal may further appeal the civil service commission's ruling pursuant to the provisions of subsection (b), section twenty, article fourteen of this chapter or subsection (b), section twenty-five, article fifteen of this chapter.
(b) For noncivil service departments, a hearing board's decision rendered under subsection (c), section three of this article may be appealed by the police officer or firefighter adversely affected by the order or by the department chief if he or she believes that the department would be adversely affected by the hearing board's order. An appeal under this subsection shall be made to the circuit court of the county in which the police officer or firefighter resides.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 8. Municipal Corporations › Article 15. Fire Fighting; Fire Companies and Departments; Civil Service for Paid Fire Departments › §8-15-1. Power and Authority of Governing Body With Respect to Fires

The governing body of every municipality shall have plenary power and authority to provide for the prevention and extinguishment of fires and, for this purpose, it may, among other things, regulate how buildings shall be constructed, procure proper engines and implements, provide for the organization, equipment, and government of volunteer fire companies or of a paid fire department, prescribe the powers and duties of the companies or department, and of the several officers, provide for the appointment of officers to have command of firefighting, prescribe what their powers and duties shall be, and impose on those who fail or refuse to obey any lawful command of the officers any penalty which the governing body is authorized by law to impose for the violation of an ordinance. It may give authority to any the officer or officers to direct the pulling down or destroying of any fence, house, building, or other thing, if determined necessary to prevent the spreading of a fire. It may give authority to municipal fire marshals to (1) arrest any individual disobeying lawful orders at the scene of a fire, (2) arrest any individual who violates prohibitions against arson and explosives offenses, malicious burning, obstructing a fire marshal, or failing to obey lawful orders, (3) arrest without a warrant, if the unlawful conduct occurs in their presence, and (4) file criminal complaints with the municipal court or other appropriate judicial officer in order to obtain a warrant for the arrest and initiate a criminal matter: Provided, That any officer given this authority shall receive initial and annual training that complies with Law Enforcement Core Training Standards of the West Virginia State Fire Commission and the West Virginia State Fire Marshal.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 8. Municipal Corporations › Article 15. Fire Fighting; Fire Companies and Departments; Civil Service for Paid Fire Departments › §8-15-2. Liability for Property Pulled Down or Destroyed to Prevent Spread of Fire

The owner of any property pulled down or destroyed to prevent the spreading of a fire, as specified in section one of this article, shall be entitled to recover from the municipality the actual property damage which he may have sustained by reason of the same having been pulled down or destroyed: Provided, That no one shall recover compensation for property which would have been destroyed by fire, if the same had not been pulled down or destroyed under direction as specified in section one of this article, but recovery may be had only for what could have been saved with ordinary care and diligence had no such direction been given.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 8. Municipal Corporations › Article 15. Fire Fighting; Fire Companies and Departments; Civil Service for Paid Fire Departments › §8-15-4. Power and Authority to Form Fire Companies; Recordation of Statement; Organization

§8-15-4. Power and authority to form fire companies; recordation of statement; organization.
Any number of persons, not less than twenty, residing within the corporate limits of a municipality without a paid fire department may form themselves into a company for extinguishing fires therein. A writing stating the formation of such company, with the names of the members thereof subscribed thereto, shall be recorded in the office of the clerk of the county commission of the county wherein such municipality or the major portion of the territory thereof is located, after which the members of the company shall elect its officers, including a commander, and make rules and regulations for effecting its object consistent with the laws of the state and the ordinances of such municipality. A volunteer fire company shall be subject to the authority of the governing body.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 8. Municipal Corporations › Article 15. Fire Fighting; Fire Companies and Departments; Civil Service for Paid Fire Departments › §8-15-5. Duties of Company Members; Meetings to Inspect Equipment; Report; Penalty for Noncompliance

Every member of a volunteer fire company shall, upon any alarm of fire, attend, according to the ordinances of the municipality and the company's rules and regulations, and endeavor to extinguish the fire.
In addition to the meetings required by the ordinances of the municipality and the rules and regulations of the company, semiannual meetings of the company shall be held in April and October, on such days as the commander thereof may appoint, to examine the state of the engine, hose and other equipment, practice therewith and see that the same are in good condition. Within one month after any such semiannual meeting the commander of such company shall make to the governing body a written report of the names of those attending such meeting, together with a written report of the condition of the engine, hose and other equipment. For any failure to comply with the provisions of this section, the commander shall be fined not less than $10 nor more than $25.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 8. Municipal Corporations › Article 15. Fire Fighting; Fire Companies and Departments; Civil Service for Paid Fire Departments › §8-15-6. Dissolution of Volunteer Fire Company

Whenever the governing body shall ascertain that such company has failed, for three months successively, to consist of twenty effective members, or shall ascertain that it has failed for a like period of time to have and keep in good, serviceable condition an engine, hose or other proper equipment, such governing body shall declare such failure and by order dissolve the company.
Whenever a company is dissolved, the order of dissolution shall be recorded in the office of the clerk of the county court of the county wherein such municipality or the major portion of the territory thereof is located.