West Virginia Code Chapter 61. Crimes and Their Punishment § 61-3-39j. Use of worthless check list upon receipt of complaint for warrant

On and after the first day of July, one thousand nine hundred eighty-three, when a complaint for worthless check warrant is received by a magistrate court, the person receiving the complaint shall consult the current list of worthless check warrants for the county and any current lists of other counties in his possession to determine whether the defendant named in the complaint for warrant is also named on the list or lists as a person who has had worthless check warrants issued against him during the period covered by the lists. If the list or lists consulted indicate that the person named in the complaint has had not more than one worthless check warrant issued against him within the time period covered by the lists, the person receiving the complaint for warrant shall proceed to have a warrant issued or a notice served, as may be appropriate, in accordance with the provisions of section thirty-nine-g of this article. If the list or lists consulted indicate that the person named in the complaint has had two or more worthless check warrants issued against him within the time period covered by the lists, the person receiving the complaint for warrant shall not cause a warrant to be issued, but shall instead forthwith prepare a “Notice of Multiple Worthless Check Warrants,” which shall be in a form substantially as follows:

THIS NOTICE IS TO BE ISSUED ONLY WHEN AN INDIVIDUAL HAS HAD TWO OR MORE WORTHLESS CHECK WARRANTS ISSUED IN THE PRECEDING TWELVE MONTHS

This is to notify you that ․․․․․․․․․․ who resides at ․․․․․․․․․․ has issued worthless checks during the preceding twelve months for which warrants have been issued.

In accordance with the provisions of section thirty-nine-i, article three, chapter sixty-one of the Code of West Virginia you have ten days to advise this court on how to proceed in this matter.”

A list of the worthless check warrants shall be attached to said notice, along with information concerning the check which is the subject of the pending complaint for worthless check warrant. Warrant numbers, check numbers, dates of checks, amounts of checks, payees, and drawee financial institutions for the checks listed shall be set forth.

Immediately upon preparation of the said notice, a copy thereof shall be forwarded to the prosecuting attorney of each county upon whose list of worthless check warrants the defendant's name appears.