First Responder Defense & Justice Act Introduced in State Senate

Capital Punishment Proposed for Murder of 1^st Responders

CHARLESTON, W.Va.- The “First Responder Defense & Justice Act” was introduced in the State Senate today. Senate Bill 473 provides for capital punishment for the murder of a first responder in the line of duty.

“The time has come for the limited use of capital punishment to make absolutely clear we will not tolerate the intentional killing of first responders in West Virginia,” said State Senator Mike Stuart. “State Trooper Sgt. Cory Maynard. Charleston Patrolman Cassie Johnson. Nicholas County Sheriff’s Deputy Baker. It’s about delivering justice and deterrence. It’s about doing all we can to make sure the men and women who serve as first responders return safely home to their families each day.”

Since 2020, multiple law enforcement officers in the State of West Virginia have been fatally shot and murdered in the line of duty including Sgt. Maynard, Nicholas County Sheriff’s Deputy Thomas Baker, and Charleston Police Department Officer Cassie Johnson. Many others were targets including, most recently, State Troopers Cadin Spessert and Abe Bean, who were brutally shot multiple times during the service of a misdemeanor arrest warrant in Martinsburg.

“Passing the First Responder Defense & Justice Act will be a bold, loud, clear statement across the nation in places like Portland, Seattle, Denver and Chicago that West Virginia supports law enforcement and first responders. Reckless ‘defund the police’ efforts continue across the country and assaults on our first responders happen daily without consequence. We must make clear that we will not tolerate these acts of depravity and reckless disregard for the men and women who serve to protect each of us,” said Stuart. “This passage of this bill will be a huge statement in defense of our men and women in service, their families, and all the good people of West Virginia.”

Stuart continued, “I led successful efforts to protect law enforcement and first responders through the Law Enforcement Safety Act last year and, again, through the passage by the State Senate of the Violent Crime Prevention Act this session. I am proud to continue my efforts to back our men and women of law enforcement and first responders through this important bill, the First Responder Defense & Justice Act, to deter the heinous murder of our dedicated public servants and to ensure justice when those terrible acts unfortunately occur.”

The First Responder Defense & Justice Act includes within its terms the murder of law enforcement, firemen, and EMS workers as first responders protected under the Act. Aggravating circumstances under the bill includes a single circumstance- the victim was a law enforcement officer or first responder intentionally killed while in the performance of his or her official duty. Mitigating circumstances are included within the Act including the defendant being 17 years old or younger.

Stuart was the West Virginia Co-Chair of President Donald Trump’s 2016 campaign and is a former United States Attorney for the Southern District of West Virginia where he led the historic prosecution of justices of the West Virginia State Supreme Court of Appeals as well as a record prosecutions and raids related to the opiate crisis. Stuart led the largest takedown in West Virginia history in what was called “Operation Saigon Sunset,” in which nearly 100 individuals were targeted from Huntington to Detroit. Stuart is in his first term representing the counties of Lincoln, Logan, Boone and Kanawha.

Stuart has announced he will be a candidate for West Virginia Attorney General in the 2024 primary.