West Virginia Code Chapter 19. Agriculture § 19-2H-11. Prohibited conduct; criminal penalties

(a) A person may not release or permit the release of any captive cervids from a captive cervid farming facility.

(b) A person may not cause the entry or introduction of wild cervids into a captive cervid farming facility.

(c) An owner may not cease operation of or abandon a captive cervid farming facility without complying with the requirements and rules promulgated under this article.

(d) Any person who violates subsection (a) or (b) of this section is guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction thereof, shall be confined in jail for not more than ninety days, or fined not more than $300, or both fined and confined for a first offense. Any person who violates subsection (a) or (b) of this section for a second or subsequent offense is guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction thereof, shall be confined in jail for not more than one year, or fined not more than $1,000, or both fined and confined.

(e) Any person who intentionally or knowingly violates subsection (a), (b) or (c) of this section is guilty of a felony and, upon conviction thereof, shall be imprisoned in a state correctional facility not less than one nor more than three years, or fined not more than $1,000, or both fined and imprisoned.

(f) A person may not kill, injure, or take any captive cervid that is the property of another. A person who violates this subsection is guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction thereof, may be fined not more than $500 and pay restitution pursuant to sections four and five, article eleven-a, chapter sixty-one of this code.