West Virginia Code 29-25-26 – Forfeiture of property
(a) Anything of value, including all traceable proceeds including, but not limited to, real and personal property, moneys, negotiable instruments, securities and conveyances, is subject to forfeiture to the State of West Virginia if the item was used for any of the following:
Terms Used In West Virginia Code 29-25-26
- Gaming facility: means a designated area on the premises of an existing historic resort hotel in which West Virginia Lottery table games are conducted by a gaming licensee. See West Virginia Code 29-25-2
- State: when applied to a part of the United States and not restricted by the context, includes the District of Columbia and the several territories, and the words "United States" also include the said district and territories. See West Virginia Code 2-2-10
- West Virginia Lottery table game: means any game played with cards, dice or any mechanical, electromechanical or electronic device or machine for money, credit or any representative of value, including, but not limited to, baccarat, blackjack, poker, craps, roulette, wheel of fortune or any variation of these games similar in design or operation and expressly authorized by rule of the commission, including multiplayer electronic table games, machines and devices, but excluding video lottery, punchboards, faro, numbers tickets, push cards, jar tickets, pull tabs or similar games. See West Virginia Code 29-25-2
(1) As a bribe intended to affect the outcome of a West Virginia Lottery table game in a gaming facility; or
(2) In exchange for or to facilitate a violation of this article.
(b) The Legislature finds and declares that the seizure and sale of items under the provisions of this section is not contemplated to be a forfeiture as that term is used in section five, article XII of the Constitution of West Virginia and, to the extent that a seizure and sale may be found to be a forfeiture, the Legislature hereby finds and declares that the proceeds from a seizure and sale under this article are not part of net proceeds as it is contemplated by section five, article XII of the Constitution of West Virginia.
(c) Subsection (a) of this section does not apply if the act or omission which would give rise to the forfeiture was committed or omitted without knowledge or consent of the owner of the property to be forfeited.