Acts of the Forty-Ninth Legislature of
West Virginia, Regular Session, 1949.
pp. 166-67
Chapter 37
House Bill No. 228 - By Mr. Schupbach and Mr. Roach)
AN ACT to amend and reenact section three, article seven, chapter sixty-two of the code of West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended, relating to the execution of sentence of death.
[Passed March 12, 1949; in effect from passage. Approved by the Governor.]
Article 7. Execution of Sentences; Stays.
Section 3. Execution of death sentence.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That section three, article seven, chapter sixty-two of the code of West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended, be amended and reenacted to read as follows:
Section 3. Execution of Death Sentence. - Sentence of death, except for insurrection or rebellion, shall not be executed sooner than thirty days after the sentence is pronounced. The sentence of death shall, in every case, be executed by electrocution of the convict until he is dead: Provided, however, That as to all capital punishment crimes committed prior to the effective date of this act, the law with reference to the execution of the death penalty, in such cases, shall be by the method provided by law immediately prior to the enactment of this statute. Such punishment shall be executed within the walls of the West Virginia penitentiary and not elsewhere, and within an enclosure to be prepared for that purpose, under the direction of the warden of the penitentiary and the authorities in control thereof, which enclosure shall be so constructed as to exclude public view; and the warden of the West Virginia penitentiary, or, in case of his death, absence or inability to act, a deputy warden, shall be the executioner; and for his services in executing such sentence, the said warden, or deputy warden, shall receive the sum of twenty-five dollars, to be paid out of any fund on hand appropriated for the maintenance and support of the West Virginia penitentiary.