West Virginia Code of State Rules › Agency 26 - Veterinary Medicine › Title 26 - PROCEDURAL RULES WEST VIRGINIA BOARD OF VETERINARY MEDICINE › Series 26-01 - Organization and Operation and Licensing of Veterinarians › Section 26-1-10 - Criminal History Record Check

Current through Register Vol. XLI, No. 28, July 12, 2024
10.1. Beginning July 1, 2018, and in addition
				to all of the requirements for licensure, an applicant for an initial license
				to practice as a veterinarian in West Virginia shall submit to a state and a
				national criminal history record check and authorize the release of information
				to the Board.
10.2. The purpose of
				the criminal history record check is to assist the Board in obtaining
				information that may relate to the applicant's fitness for licensure.
10.3. In addition to the State Police, the
				Board may contract with and designate a company specializing in the services
				required by this section instead of requiring the applicant to apply directly
				to the West Virginia State Police or similar out-of-state agency for the
				criminal history records checks; provided that any such company must utilize
				protocols consistent with standards established by the Federal Bureau of
				Investigation and the National Crime Prevention and Privacy Compact.
10.4. The applicant shall furnish to the
				State Police, or other organization designated by the Board, a full set of
				fingerprints and any additional information required to complete the criminal
				history record check.
10.5. The
				applicant is responsible for any fees required by the State Police, or other
				organization duly designated by the Board, for the actual costs of the
				fingerprinting and the actual costs of conducting a complete criminal history
				record check.
10.6. The Board may
				require the applicant to obtain a criminal history records check from a similar
				Board approved agency or organization in the state of the applicant's
				residence, if outside of West Virginia.
10.7. The applicant shall authorize the
				release of all records, not sealed, obtained by the criminal history record
				check to the Board. Criminal history record checks shall be verified by a
				source acceptable to the Board, other than the applicant.
10.8. A criminal history record check
				submitted in support of an application for licensure must have been requested
				by the applicant no earlier than twelve (12) months immediately prior to the
				Board's receipt of the application for licensure.
10.9. An initial licensure application is not
				complete until the Board receives the results of a state and a national
				criminal history record check conducted by the State Police or another entity
				duly authorized by the Board. The Board shall not grant an application for
				licensure submitted by any applicant who fails or refuses to submit the
				criminal history record check required by this section.
10.10. The Board may not disqualify an
				applicant from initial licensure because of a prior criminal conviction unless
				that conviction bears a rational nexus to the practice of veterinary medicine.
				The Board shall consider at a minimum:
10.10.1. The nature and seriousness of the
				crime;
10.10.2. The passage of time
				since the commission of the crime;
10.10.3. The relationship of the crime to the
				ability, capacity, and fitness required to perform the duties and discharge the
				responsibilities attendant to the practice of veterinary medicine;
				and
10.10.4. Any evidence of
				rehabilitation or treatment undertaken by the applicant.