Statutes and Ordinances—Domestic Battery—Recidivists

For a person to be convicted of the crime of felony third-offense domestic battery, the charged offense need occur within 10 years of only one—not both—of two prior domestic violence convictions, the West Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals held Oct. 28. (State v. Gibson)

Under W.Va. Code § 61-2-28(d), a person who has been convicted of a third or subsequent domestic battery or assault “is guilty of a felony if the offense occurs within ten years of a prior conviction of any of these [domestic violence] offenses.” A lower court had found that both priors must have occurred within ...