Photo provided Delegate Shawn Fluharty, D-Ohio, expresses his disappointment and disgust after his legislation “Raylee’s Law” – a bill seeking to keep allegedly abused children from being removed from public school and homeschooled – once again failed to pass the West Virginia Legislature.

WHEELING – West Virginia legislation seeking to stop children suspected of being abused at home from being removed from public school and homeschooled will come back again in 2027 because the support is now even stronger, local lawmakers promise.

“Raylee’s Law’ – introduced by Delegate Shawn Fluharty, D-Ohio each of the past six years – failed to pass the legislature again this year despite late session efforts by supporters on Friday Saturday.

Anger and emotion spilled over as time ran out on the legislative session – with House Bill 5537 being passed by the House of Delegates at 11:57 p.m. The three minutes remaining in the session didn’t provide the time for the Senate to approve House changes in the bill even it hey they hadn’t already adjourned sine die.

“They purposely held it back and kept it from having a fair vote,” Fluharty said. “Then they slowed the process by adding amendments without merit. It was the most abhorrent, disgusting behavior I have seen during my whole time in the Legislature.

“But after what happened at the close of the session, it has more people fired up. We have more momentum than we ever had and I look forward to working it next year in the Senate. I just hope we take it on early and make it front and center.”

Fluharty won’t be around to introduce the legislation in the House. He is instead running for a seat down the hall in the State Senate chamber this year.

Raylee Browning was found murdered the day after Christmas when she was just 8-years-old. That was eight years ago, and today she would be a 16-year-old high school student, Fluharty explained.

Carrie Ciliberti – the Nicholas County teacher who was legally mandated to report the suspected abuse of Raylee – contacted him six years ago about sponsoring legislation to protect children from being pulled from public school when child abuse is suspected.

“I was out of her district, but she couldn’t find a local representative that would take on the legislation,” he said.

Fluharty explained the one-page bill he proposed was very simple. It proposes that when a mandatory reporter such as a teacher makes a report of suspected abuse – and the child’s parent or guardian next asks to remove the child from public school to homeschool – that an investigation into the abuse take place over the next 10 days before the child can leave the school.

“That’s all it says. It’s clear. Plain as day,” he said. “Anyone else who says otherwise is being disingenuous.”

But each year, the legislation that has seemed so simple has failed to pass the West Virginia Legislature. It has passed the House on two occasions, and Friday evening it passed the Senate after Sen. Ryan Weld, R-Brooke, successfully added it to House Bill 5537 – a bill repealing obsolete and outdated sections of the education code.

Fluharty said he expected the House to quickly pass the measure early on Saturday, and that he would be thanking the Legislature and Weld for their help in finally passing the bill.

But it wasn’t meant to be.

“It has the support, it just deserves a fair up or down vote with no shenanigans and people who want to defend child abusers,” Fluharty said. “At the end of the day, they are defending child abusers.

“Protecting children is good policy. Protecting children is not political. What has happened is that individuals have turned Raylee’s Law into something that it is not. They claim it is an attack on homeschoolers. It is not. It doesn’t even apply to home schoolers. If you are already homeschooling it doesn’t apply to you.”

While the measure has been picking up momentum and bi-partisan support over the past four years, it had not been able to pass the Senate until Friday night.

“I want to give Sen. Weld credit,” Fluharty said. “He worked hard to get this out of the Senate. I worked hard to get it out of the House. We work well together, and I look forward to working with him going forward to get this accomplished.”

Weld shares Fluharty’s passion for the legislation.

“I have never seen a group of legislators work so hard to protect child abusers in my life,” Weld said of the action on Saturday night.

The question is why some lawmakers are trying to block the legislation.

“I don’t know right now. But I’m going to find out,” he said. “What happened in the House on Saturday was absolutely shameful.

“Beginning with the fact it (HB 5537) was seemingly buried under a stack of bills, and it wasn’t brought up until 11 p.m. with less than an hour left in the session. They had had the bill since 11 a.m. It was shameful. That’s the only way I can put it.”

Late legislative action regarding Raylee’s Law began on Friday afternoon when Weld added it as an amendment to HB 5537, a bill introduced by Delegate Joe Ellington, R-Mercer.

“I don’t think he was happy about that,” Weld added. “He doesn’t like the (Raylee’s Law) bill.”

Shortly after the Senate approved the HB 5537 with the amendment included, Senate President Randy Smith, R-Preston, pulled the amendment out of the legislation on the grounds “it was not germane” to the bill.

Weld challenged Smith’s ruling on the Senate floor, and his colleagues voted in his favor to overturn the Senate president’s ruling. It was the first time in about 30 years that happened, according to Weld.

“Did I want to stand up and challenge the ruling of the president? No, but that is what it came to,” he said. “In order for the bill to move forward, I had to challenge the ruling of the president.

“We are talking about child abuse here. The consequences to me be damned. I’m already in the back row and it’s a worthy fight – a worthy cause.”

HB 5537 passed the Senate on Friday with a vote of 24-7. Locally, Weld and Sen. Charles Clements, R-Wetzel voted yes, with Sen. Chris Rose, R-Monongalia, casting a “no” vote.

Sen. Laura Wakim Chapman, R-Ohio, was one of three senators absent and not casting a vote on the bill. She did not immediately return calls and messages seeking comment Tuesday afternoon.

“I have never really gotten emotional over a vote or bill,” Weld said. “This was a difficult one to handle, watch and see what happened in the House.”

But the measure is coming back next year, Weld indicated.

“Sadly, there doesn’t seem to be overwhelming support on such a simple issue. But it does have enough support to pass,” he said. “This is an excellent example of good legislation being held hostage by a small group of people who wish to protect child abusers. It makes zero sense.

“Myself and Sen. Amy Grady (R-Mason) – the education chair who I worked arm-in-arm with in the Senate – will do so again and you will see this bill again next year. We are not giving up.”

Another notable aspect to the late vote in the House Saturday night was that it passed 94-1. The lone “no” vote came from Delegate Charles Sheedy, R-Marshall, who nevertheless acknowledged he is a strong supporter of Raylee’s Law.

“I did that to thumb my nose at the child abusing homeschoolers,” he explained. “They had the audacity to say it didn’t protect children when it did.”

Sheedy said he was aware the Senate had already adjourned the session, and “it didn’t matter which way the vote went.”

He believes Raylee’s Law will be back before state lawmakers next year.

“I do. I think it will come back with a vengeance and pass,” Sheedy said.