WV Farm Bureau Magazine January 2016 | Page 32

sold to the adjacent property owners within one year of date of abandonment. If abandoned railroad rights-of-way are used for recreational purposes the agency owning or providing the recreational use shall, with the owner’s consent, build and maintain a fence between the right-of-way and adjoining private property sufficient to discourage users from trespassing on the private property. 128. LEGAL LIABILITY West Virginia Farm Bureau supports reduced landowner liability for trespassers, hunters and utility companies. WVFB supports reduced liability for landowners and livestock producers for loose livestock. We recommend that statutory limits be established for liability awards for professional malpractice, landowner liability and liability of municipalities, and that attorney fees be capped in personal injury cases. Often a person becomes a defendant in a liability suit through no neglect on his or her part. The statute should be changed to provide that the person bringing the legal action be accountable for all court costs and legal fees if the defendant is found not to be at fault. Toward these ends, the Farm Bureau shall cooperate with other groups and agencies to change liability law and procedures. 129. CRIMES AND PUNISHMENT West Virginia Farm Bureau supports strong punishment as a deterrent to crime. We also support fair and consistent administration of justice, and believe the punishment should fit the crime. Property Damage We recommend that the West Virginia Legislature: • • • • Adopt more severe penalties for violation of property rights and destruction of property and provide for restitution and reimbursement by the perpetrator Direct the Department of Public Safety (and other law enforcement officers) to give higher priority to the enforcement of laws pertaining to the protection of property Provide for mandatory sentences to be given to persons convicted of vandalism and breaking and entering Amend the law to prohibit drivers, owners, wrecker operators or law enforcement officials from leaving the scene of an accident in which a 32 West Virginia Farm Bureau News fence is damaged, allowing escape of livestock, until emergency repairs are performed and the landowner, tenant or lessee is notified of the incident and furnished the name and address of the person responsible for the damage Capital Punishment We recommend that capital punishment be restored for wanton and deliberate murders and for murders performed in the commission of rape, robbery, or other heinous crimes. We recommend that the date of execution not exceed six months following a conviction. We support the enactment of legislation that would impose the death penalty for peacetime espionage acts involving the passing of information that would constitute a serious threat to national security. Drugs We support the right of employers and government to test for illegal drug use. We request that schools teach the dangerous effects of drugs and alcohol. We further support prosecuting attorneys and law enforcement officers’ efforts to control the sale of drugs and alcohol. We oppose plea bargaining or other arrangements that allow reduced sentences in drug and alcohol-related cases. In order to be more effective at apprehending drug and alcohol abusers, times and locations of sobriety checkpoints should not be publicized. We oppose the legalization of marijuana and support mandatory sentences for possession and/ or sale. We recommend that drug dealers who are indicted and found guilty be severely punished. We also recommend that the Federal Drug Task Force make unannounced drug investigations without the knowledge of state or elected officials. Pornographic Media We support legislation prohibiting the distribution of pornographic materials. We favor the efforts of the Federal Communications Commission to establish guidelines designed to prevent salacious television programs and pornographic material on the internet. We urge Farm Bureau members to oppose the use of objectionable material through letters to, and personal contacts with, television stations, program sponsors, theater owners, motion picture production companies, publishers, and newsstand operators. Criminal Justice and Community Service We oppose leniency in granting probation and suspended sentences. We support closer monitoring of persons given parole or placed on a work release