PROOF OF CONCEPT — full quality-of-life profile for West Virginia, 16 dimensions of the sex-offense registry regime. Ratings are researcher judgments from the registrant's perspective; each links its statute. NOT legal advice.
Weighted burden index 62.2/100 · rank 12 of 56 (1 = least burdensome) · 11/16 dimensions statute-verified · 1 unverified.
Legend: 🟢 favorable (less burden) · 🟠 moderate · 🔴 restrictive · ℹ️ context · ⚪ unknown. ✓ = statute-verified.
| Dimension | Rating | Detail | Statute |
|---|---|---|---|
| Registration length | 🔴 restrictive | 10 years or life, but the life triggers (prior conviction, multiple victims/violations, sexually violent offense/SVP, or ANY offense involving a minor) capture the majority of registrants — lifetime | W.Va. Code § 15-12-4 ✓ |
| Removal / petition off | 🔴 restrictive | No time-served or rehabilitation petition — removal only if the underlying conviction is overturned; the 10-year term ends automatically, lifetime registrants have no relief mechanism — ⚑ needs human review | W.Va. Code § 15-12-4 ✓ |
| Individualized risk assessment | 🔴 restrictive | No — two levels by offense statute, no risk assessment | WVC §15-12-10 |
| In-person reporting frequency | 🟠 moderate | Annually, or every 90 days for designated violent offenders | WVC §15-12-10 |
| Registration fee | 🔴 restrictive | Yes — $125 recurring statewide annual fee (HB3164, W.Va. Code § 15-12-2(o)), effective 1/1/2026 and currently in effect/enforced; under NARSOL-WVRSOL federal challenge (Basham v. Mitchell) but not enjoined — preliminary-injunction motion pending, no ruling as of 2026 | W.Va. Code § 15-12-2(o) ✓ |
| Residency restriction | 🟠 moderate | Supervision-only residency ban — persons on extended supervised release for a sexually violent offense may not establish a residence within 1,000 feet of a school or child care facility (or the victim's residence); applies during supervised release, not permanently — 1000 ft | WVC §62-12-26 ✓ |
| Employment restriction | 🟠 moderate | Supervision-only — a person on extended supervised release for a sexually violent offense (10-yr-to-life term) is 'prohibited from…accepting employment within 1,000 feet of a school or child care facility'; not a permanent statewide bar | W.Va. Code § 62-12-26 ✓ |
| Presence / loitering restriction | 🟢 favorable | None statewide — no presence/loitering bar near schools/parks; only the supervised-release residence/employment 1,000-ft rule applies | n/a ✓ |
| Visitor registration trigger | 🟠 moderate | Register if present more than 15 continuous days | WVC §15-12-9 |
| Internet identifiers required | 🔴 restrictive | Required — must report 'any Internet accounts the registrant has and the screen names, user names, or aliases the registrant uses on the Internet' | WVC §15-12-2(d)(8) ✓ |
| Civil commitment | 🟢 favorable | No such laws | n/a |
| Public website exposure | 🟠 moderate | Statutory disclosure is tiered — § 15-12-5 makes only LIFETIME registrants routinely public (quarterly list); a 10-year registrant's information is released only when a county resident petitions the circuit court and it finds the disclosure relevant to public safety. (Note: the WVSP online registry in practice may show more than the statutory floor — not verifiable here.) — lowest tier withheld | W.Va. Code § 15-12-5 ✓ |
| Halloween / holiday restriction | ⚪ unknown | No statewide Halloween/holiday statute confirmed; not addressed in the registry statute reviewed | n/a |
| Marked driver's license / ID | 🔴 restrictive | Branded for SVPs — any replacement driver's license or non-driver ID card issued to a person designated a sexually violent predator 'must be coded by the commissioner to denote the person is a sexually violent predator' (non-SVP registrants not marked) | W.Va. Code (DMV SVP license/ID coding) ✓ |
| Community notification (& who pays) | 🔴 restrictive | Broad active notification — within 5 business days State Police distribute registrant notice statements to schools, child care, CPS and youth-serving community/religious orgs; SVPs also get published community-notification programs (§ 15-12-5); no registrant charge | WVC §15-12-5 ✓ |
| Age of consent (context) | ℹ️ context | 16 — with close-in-age exception (partner must be 4+ years older than the under-16 person to be an offense per § 61-8B-5) | WVC §61-8B-5 ✓ |
Source wiki page: West Virginia · compare with others via the index. Weighted index from the v1 model (weighted_score.py); weights encode NARSOL's judgment about everyday lived burden. Removal ratings and the weights need NARSOL/attorney sign-off before authoritative use.