Man Remains Jailed On Murder Charge

• {Elkins, West Virginia}...Twenty-three year-old Christopher Thomas Sheppard of Hepzibah will remain in jail while he awaits a February 21st trial on a first-degree murder charge in the death of his girlfriend's 14 month old son. Prosecutors say Sheppard was babysitting at a Jane Lew apartment and left the 14-month-old boy unattended during a bath. The child fell out of the sink and landed on his head. He died of brain trauma. Sheppard is accused of doing nothing until the mother returned home. Monday, Lewis County Circuit Court Judge Thomas Keadle denied Sheppard's request for a bond hearing. Sheppard originally was held in jail in lieu of a $50,000 bond, but Keadle revoked the bond at Sheppard's November 10th arraignment following his indictment by the Lewis County grand jury.

MSHA Puts Mines On Violations Notice

• {Washington, D.C.}...The federal Mine Safety and Health Administration has put eight mines on notice that they have a potential pattern of safety violations and will face more scrutiny. The four West Virginia mines are Marfork Coal's Parker Peerless mine in Raleigh County, Pay Car Mining's No. 58 Mine in McDowell County, Pine Ridge Coal's Big Mountain No. 16 in Boone County and Rio Group's Coalburg No. 2 Mine in Logan County. Also targeted are Nine Mile Mining's No. 3 Mine in Wise County, Virginia, Manalapan Mining's RB No. 12 in Harlan County, Kentucky, Big Ridge's Willow Lake Portal in Illinois and Queenstake Resources' Jerritt Canyon Mill in Elko, Nevada.

Environmental Groups/Fola Coal Co. Settle Lawsuit

{Charleston, West Virginia}...The Sierra Club and West Virginia Highlands Conservancy have settled a lawsuit with Fola Coal Co. over runoff from a mountaintop removal mining operation. The environmental groups sued the company in October 2010, claiming violations of the federal Clean Water Act at Surface Mine No. 3 in Clay and Nicholas counties. Under the agreement, Fola agrees to pay $200,000 to the West Virginia Land Trust and a $25,000 fine to the federal government and to repair any damage caused to the Boardtree Branch waterway, but it does not have to admit liability. The agreement filed Wednesday in Charleston must be reviewed by U.S. District Judge John Copenhaver.

Man Rams Vehicle Into Bank

{Huntington, West Virginia}...Huntington Police arrested 24 year old Andrew Brown of Chesapeake, Ohio and charged him with misdemeanor DUI and leaving the scene of an accident after he slammed his truck into the front portion of the Community Trust Bank at the corner of 10th Street and 3rd Avenue in Huntington early Wednesday morning. Before crashing into the bank, police say he hit a parked vehicle about a block from the bank. Police say Brown failed a field sobriety test, and his blood alcohol level was .242.

Couple Charged With Car Break-Ins

{Charleston, West Virginia}...Wednesday, Kanawha County Sheriff's Deputies arrested Charles Allen Burns, 43, of Winfield, and Angela Mae Nichols, 31, of Clendenin, on multiple felony charges in connection to car break-ins and credit card fraud spanning 14 counties. Police announced in November that they were looking for the pair after they allegedly took credit cards from cars broken into in Kanawha, Putnam and Cabell counties. According to a criminal complaint filed in Kanawha County Magistrate Court, the couple is connected to car break-ins in Boone, Logan, Braxton, Fayette, Harrison, Clay and Greenbrier counties. The criminal complaint did not list alleged incidents from the remaining four counties.

Center Denied Grant Money

{Charleston, West Virginia}...The Bob Burdette Center in Charleston was set to receive $13,500 in grant money from the city, but the center will not be receiving the money after a discrimination lawsuit was filed against it. Jessica Hudson filed a complaint of discrimination alleging she was hired as the executive director, but, before she even started the job, the center fired her after the board determined she was a lesbian based on her Facebook page. Hudson claims the board held an emergency meeting to discuss her sexuality but never approached her about it. A hearing to dismiss Hudson’s lawsuit is set for Thursday. Mayor Danny Jones says, “When it comes to violating people's rights because of their sexual preference, the city of Charleston stands firm.”

Cabell Huntington Health Department Confirms TB

• {Huntington, West Virginia}...Health officials in Huntington are on alert. Elizabeth Ayers with the Cabell Huntington Health Department says five to six people in Huntington have tested positive for tuberculosis, a serious and sometimes deadly disease. Ayers say the cases of TB were happening in a high rise in the downtown area of Huntington. A worker at Westview Manor has confirmed one person had TB and says health department workers tested 84 people Monday who live in the high rise. The person who tested positive for tuberculosis is no longer living at the high rise. People living at Westview say the facility is extremely clean, and they know workers are taking every precaution.

FOP Sets Up Account For Nitro Officer

• {Nitro, West Virginia}...The Fraternal Order of Police, Capital City Lodge No. 74, has set up an account to help Nitro Officer 25 year old Jimmy Lee pay his medical bills. Lee was injured when he was hit by a car while directing traffic Thanksgiving evening at 40th Street and Cross Lanes Drive. His skull was fractured after he was thrown an estimated 60 feet, and he underwent emergency surgery. Lee was breathing on his own early Saturday morning and was moving his fingers and toes and was recognizing people. The account is at WesBanco Bank and now is accepting donations. Those interested in making donations can make checks payable to FOP #74, P.O. Box 2221, Charleston, WV 25328, with "Officer Jimmy Lee" in the memo section.

Accused Sniper Pleads Not Guilty To Firearms Charges

• {Charleston, West Virginia}...Shawn Lester of Charleston, the man charged in the 2003 "sniper" shootings of Jeanie Patton, Okey Meadows Jr. and Gary Carrier, was arraigned in Federal Court Tuesday on unrelated firearms charges. A federal grand jury indicted Lester earlier this month on weapons charges alleging his possession of a shotgun in 2007. Lester had a 1994 conviction for grand larceny and a 2001 conviction on drug charges and as a result was prohibited from having a firearm. Lester pleaded not guilty before U.S. Magistrate Mary Stanley, who set a January 30th trial date and ordered Lester held without bond.

Boone County Woman Arrested

• {Wharton, West Virginia}...Boone County Sheriff's Deputies have arrested and charged 39 year old Christy Lynn Sampson from Wharton with delivery of a controlled substance. Deputies say Sampson delivered Hydrocodone to Boone County Elementary School teacher 34 year old Kimberly Gibson of Van who was arrested Monday after she ran a stop sign in Wharton while returning to the school from her lunch break.

MSHA To Release UBB Report

• {Washington, D.C.}...Federal Mine Safety and Health Administration investigators will soon release their final report on the 2010 explosion that killed 29 men at West Virginia's Upper Big Branch mine. MSHA says it will brief the victims' families and the media on December 6th in Beaver. MSHA, the United Mine Workers and an independent panel all agree that poorly maintained machines cutting into sandstone created a spark and created the blast when it ignited both a small amount of naturally occurring methane gas and a massive accumulation of explosive coal dust. Malfunctioning water sprayers allowed what could have been a small flare-up to become a blast. The mine was run by Massey Energy but is now owned by Virginia-based Alpha Natural Resources. MSHA is likely to cite Massey for violations that contributed.

Retired Williamson Daily News Reporter Dies

{Williamson, West Virginia}...Recently retired Williamson Daily News reporter Charlotte Sanders died Saturday at Appalachian Regional Hospital in South Williamson at the age of 90. Sanders started her career in radio in 1939, and a shortage of reporters at the Daily News during World War II led to her hiring in 1943. She worked for the Daily News for 68 years before retiring in 1987 at 65 and returning to work following her husband's death. Among the stories she covered were John F. Kennedy's visit to Williamson during the 1960 presidential election and President Lyndon B. Johnson's declaration of war on poverty during a 1964 trip to Martin County, Kentucky. Services will be held Friday at the East Williamson Baptist Church.

Ceredo Case Goes To Grand Jury

{Ceredo, West Virginia}...Jackie Dale Hewlett is charged with negligent homicide and leaving the scene of an accident causing death or injury. West Virginia State Police Trooper D.J. Chapman testified in a Wayne county courtroom Tuesday that DNA on the suspect's vehicle matched that of 38 year old Candy Mallory of Kenova. Her body was found over an embankment near Camden Park on July 10th. Magistrate Teddy Mays bound the case over to a grand jury and also reduced Hewlett's bond by half, to $25,000 dollars cash only.

Woman Gets New Trial

• {Charleston, West Virginia}...The state Supreme Court ruled Monday that Rhonda Kay Stewart be allowed a new trial to present a Battered Woman's Syndrome defense after being convicted of first-degree murder in 2009 after fatally shooting her estranged husband. Fifty-six year old Sammy Stewart was killed in CAMC Memorial Hospital's intensive-care unit. Rhonda Stewart was sentenced to life in prison with the possibility of parole after 15 years. The 3-2 opinion concludes that the Kanawha Circuit jury should have heard that Stewart had been beaten and abused by Sammy Stewart throughout their 38 year marriage.

Lunsford Ordered To Drug Counseling

• {Elkins, West Virginia}...U.S. Magistrate John Kaull has ordered that Lena Lunsford must live apart from her husband and submit to drug counseling while awaiting trial on federal welfare fraud charges. Federal prosecutors accuse Lunsford of violating the terms of her release by being caught in possession of bath salts on November 1st in Clarksburg. But her husband, Ralph, testified Monday in Elkins that the drugs were his and she didn't know about them. Kaull ruled Lena Lunsford did violate a condition that had required her to report any interaction with police, but he denied a request for home incarceration. Lunsford will be living with her mother in Walkersville.

State Employee Arrested

• {St. Albans, West Virginia}...Jennifer Fazzolari, 42, of Cross Lanes, who works in the Homelessness Prevention and Rapid Re-Housing Program for the Governor's Office of Economic Opportunity, was arrested Sunday and charged with trespassing after allegedly refusing to leave her boyfriend's St. Albans home. Capt. James Agee of the St. Albans Police Department says officers went to the Highland Drive home of Frederick Wheeler because a woman at the home was allegedly refusing to leave. By the time officers arrived, the woman had left, but she showed up again a few minutes later, ignored police officers outside, marched back into the house, sat down in a chair and refused to budge, telling officers they would have to arrest her.

Huntington Man Charged With South Carolina Murder

• {Manning, South Carolina}...Twenty-eight year old Christopher Heck of Huntington has been charged with the first degree murder of 47 year old Charlotte Altman of Camden, South Carolina. South Carolina Highway Patrol officers pulled Heck over for driving under the influence. When officers searched his car, they found items and an identification card that belonged to Altman. Friday, investigators went to Altman's uncle's house in in Manning, South Carolina, where she was believed to be staying and found signs of a break-in. Once inside, they found Altman's body on the kitchen floor and signs that she had been stabbed in the neck. Police believe Altman came to the house on Wednesday and caught Heck robbing it.

Charleston Men Plead Guilty To Malicious Wounding

{Charleston, West Virginia}...Greg Allen Burdette, 34, and Lance Michael Jefferson, 18, both of Charleston, have each pleaded guilty to one count of malicious wounding in the July beating of 40 year old Charles Bryant. At his plea hearing Monday, Burdette told Kanawha Circuit Judge Carrie Webster that he, Jefferson and Bryant, a homeless, wheelchair-bound man, had gotten into a fight, and he knocked Bryant out. According to a criminal complaint filed in Kanawha County Magistrate Court, Burdette accused Bryant of stealing his cigarettes while they were on the porch of an abandoned house on Bigley Avenue. Jefferson admitted to the charge in a separate hearing last week.

Ceredo Police Investigating Man's Death

{Ceredo, West Virginia}...Ceredo Police are investigating the death of 22 year old Michael Meachem, originally from Proctorville, Ohio. Officers responded to a call at the Greenwood Apartments around 2:30 A.M. Sunday morning. They say there was a fight between Meachem and his girlfriend. Meachem was taken to Cabell Huntington Hospital where he was pronounced dead. Police say it appears he died by suffocation. Ceredo Police Chief Anthony Poston says Meachem's girlfriend, who attends Marshall University, is a "person of interest" and is cooperating with police.

West Virginia Building Catches Fire

{Huntington, West Virginia}... Part of downtown Huntington was blocked off Sunday evening when a small fire broke out in the West Virginia Building at 9th Street and 4th Avenue as concert-goers were headed to the Alice Cooper show at the Keith-Albee Performing Arts Center. The West Virginia Building was built in 1924 and is the tallest building in downtown Huntington. It is home to several apartments, along with Huntington Prime restaurant and Village Collection women’s boutique on the ground floor, and Huntington Prime’s Piano Bar on the top floor. Residents were quickly evacuated, and no one was reported injured.

Charleston Man Dies After Two-Vehicle Crash

{St. Albans,  West Virginia}... John C. Frazier, 91, of Charleston, died Sunday after a two-vehicle crash in St. Albans. Police say, about 2:30 P.M., Frazier was driving with his wife as a passenger when he pulled out of Alameda Street onto U.S. 60 into the path of a vehicle driven by Robin L. Brown, 53, of St. Albans, who was heading east. St. Albans firefighters had to cut Frazier out of the vehicle. His wife was not injured. Brown did not suffer any injuries. Frazier was taken to a local hospital where he later died.

Teen Leads Police On Chase

{Nitro, West Virginia}... West Virginia State Police arrested 18 year old Travis Myers in Nitro Saturday morning and charged him with fleeing in a vehicle, fleeing on foot and reckless driving, with more charges pending. Troopers say when they pulled Myers over along Route 60 East, he threw a bag out the window containing what appeared to be marijuana. When a trooper picked up the bag and approached Myers' vehicle, he took off, leading several departments on a 15 minute chase, reaching speeds of more than 90 miles per hour, before turning onto a dead-end road in Putnam County, where he got out of the car and fled on foot. He was caught a short time later. During the arrest, police say there was a struggle and Myers had to be tazed.

Kanawha County Deputy Injured

{Sissonville, West Virginia}... A Kanawha County Sheriff's Deputy was taken to a Charleston hospital with mainly lower body injuries after he and his cruiser were hit by an oncoming car while he was attempting to get back into it. The impact caused the deputy to be thrown over a guardrail. The incident happened just after 1:00 P.M. Saturday while the deputy and another police officer were exchanging a prisoner at the Tuppers Creek exit on Call Road in Sissonville.

Charleston Teen Shot

{Charleston, West Virginia}... Police say a teenager was shot Saturday morning after he busted through the front door and started firing up the stairs of a home along Main Street on Charleston's West Side. The homeowner, who was armed, returned shots, hitting the teenager in the arm. After being shot, the teen fled, firing shots back toward the house as he was running away. Charleston Police arrested the teen a few blocks away from the crime scene, and he was taken to a local hospital for treatment. The juvenile is facing burglary and wanton endangerment charges.

Former Mingo County Official Dies

{Matewan, West Virginia}... Former West Virginia Delegate Mike Whitt died at his home in Matewan Thursday at the age of 59. Whitt had lead the Mingo County Redevelopment Authority since 1990. He served in the House from 1987 to 1989. A funeral service will be held at 1:00 P.M. Monday at the Regional Church of God in Delbarton.

Senator Green Removed As Chairman

{Charleston, West Virginia}... Friday, Senate President Jeff Kessler, who was elected to the seat on November 12th, removed State Senator Mike Green as chairman of the chamber's Energy, Industry and Mining Committee, replacing him with Senator Doug Facemire, D-Braxton. Facemire was part of a 10-member panel that produced a bill earlier this month that would regulate the Marcellus shale gas industry in the state.

Black Friday Shopper Dies

{Charleston, West Virginia}...About 12:15 A.M. Friday, Walter Vance of Logan County collapsed while doing some Black Friday shopping at Target in the Southridge Shopping Center in South Charleston. Vance, a pharmacist at the Aracoma Drug Store in Chapmanville, was taken to the hospital where he died.

Nitro Police Officer In Critical Condition

{Nitro, West Virginia}...Nitro Police Officer 25 year old Jimmy Lee remained in critical condition Friday, but he was showing signs of recovery after being struck by a car on Thanksgiving evening while he was directing traffic at the intersection of Cross Lanes Drive and 40th Street. Police say a broken down car was being loaded onto a tow truck when traffic began backing up. When Lee tried to stop one lane to allow the other to go, he was struck. Lee suffered a fractured skull, a blood clot on his brain and severe blood loss. Lee was taken into emergency surgery at CAMC General Hospital Thursday night. He was able to open his eyes, move his toes and give a thumbs-up during a nerve test Friday afternoon.

Fire Destroys Home In Marmet

{Marmet, West Virginia}...It only took about ten minutes for fire to gut a trailer in Marmet Friday afternoon, leaving Angela Selbe, her husband and her five children without a home. Neighbors fled as the fire started to spread, but Chesapeake and Marmet firefighters stopped it at the fence line. Slebe said the fire appeared to come from a bedroom and that it came fast. She got out only with the clothing she was wearing and her purse.
　

West Virginia Gas Prices Down

{Charleston, West Virginia}...Gas prices are down 8 cents in West Virginia but motorists are still paying more than they did a year ago. AAA's Fuel Gauge says the average price for a gallon of regular, unleaded gasoline in the state fell to $3.41 cents over the past week. That's about 46 cents higher than a year ago, when the average price was about $2.95. Prices range from $3.34 in Wheeling to $3.45 in Martinsburg.
Nationally, gas prices average $3.34.

Bluefield Gas' Rate Request Denied

{Bluefield, West Virginia}...State regulators have denied Bluefield Gas' request to raise rates by 6.89%. The Public Service Commission says in an order released this week that professional account expenses submitted by the company were in dispute. The utility was ordered to coordinate its tax year and annual report year. Bluefield Mayor Linda Whalen says Bluefield Gas, which serves about 3,600 customers, had received approval to raise rates eight out of the past 10 years, and any increase would be an additional burden.

Boone County Man Arrested

{Nellis, West Virginia}...Thursday, West Virginia State Police arrested John Baldwin of Nellis in Boone County. Baldwin is charged with two counts of child gross neglect with risk of serious injury, two counts of sex abuse by a parent or guardian, one count of child abuse with bodily injury, first degree sexual abuse, first degree sexual assault with intrusion and one count of incest. While investigating, State Police found a meth lab.

St. Albans Man Arrested

{St. Albans, West Virginia}...St. Albans Police arrested 25 year old Daniel Satterfield Thursday for firing an assault rifle under the overpass near Kanawha Terrace and Drew Street. Officers say he'd been target shooting when he shot the gun within 500 feet of a home.

"Friends Of Coal" Logo Draws Attention

{Charleston, West Virginia}...Author Denise Giardina, a longtime opponent of mountaintop removal mining, says a new "Friends of Coal" logo on the hardwood basketball floor in the Charleston Civic Center is inappropriate because it turns athletic events into political events. The basketball logo, which debuted at Tuesday's WVU-Morehead State gamem is burnt-orange and black. It blends the outline of the state with the lines on a ball, and,  along the state's northern border are the silhouettes of three coal miners. West Virginia Coal Association President Bill Raney says supporting tournaments and venues is an example of industry supporting the communities where it does business, and he wouldn't expect environmentalists to like anything his association does. Laura Phillips, president of the Charleston ad agency the Phillips Group, says the logo may overshadow other advertisers, including Chesapeake Energy, which has a $250,000, five-year deal to sponsor the Marshall-WVU game. It pays $50,000 a year for the right to call the game the Chesapeake Energy Capital Classic. Vice president Scott Rotruck says the new coal logo doesn't affect Chesapeake's commitment.

Rain A Big Problem In West Virginia

{Charleston, West Virginia}...At least three dozen roads in West Virginia remained closed Wednesday by high water, and flood warnings were in effect for some areas following several days of rainfall. Snowshoe Mountain officials announced Wednesday that their opening had been postponed because Pocahontas County had received 2.5 inches of rainfall in the last two days.

Raleigh County Man Charged With Murder

{Charleston, West Virginia}...Twenty-nine year old Jessie Suttle was arrested Wednesday in Dunbar and charged with two counts of murder. Police say Suttle fatally shot 18 year old Landon Williams and 16 year old James Bell, both of Oak Hill, Tuesday night during a party at Suttle's home on Mill Creek Road in Mount Hope. Deputies say Suttle's brother got into an argument with Williams, and Suttle got a gun and fired two shots at Williams, striking him once in the forehead and once in the left side of his neck, killing him instantly. Suttle then shot a third round, striking Bell in the stomach. Bell was taken to Plateau Medical Center in Oak Hill, where he underwent emergency surgery but later died from injuries. Witnesses at the scene gave conflicting accounts of whether Suttle intended to shoot Bell or if the third shot ricocheted and struck him.

Comcast Cable Contract Approved

• {Huntington, West Virginia}...Cabell County Commissioners voted unanimously Tuesday to accept a new contract with Comcast Cable. The contract with the county had come to an end in 2008, but the services continued under the terms of the expired contract. The new contract is for 10 years instead of 15 years. Comcast will also include a customer support number on their bills, not just the county commission number and customers will be able to have their bills pro-rated if they experience outages. Comcast is the only cable service provider in Huntington.

Man Allegedly Fires Weapon At Neighbors

• {Clendenin, West Virginia}...Kanawha County Deputies arrested Shawn Weese, 38, of Clendenin, early Tuesday morning after authorities were called to his residence on Laurel Fork Road where he was allegedly firing a weapon at his neighbors. When deputies arrived on the scene, they heard multiple shots, and SWAT units were dispatched as deputies continued to hear shots. Upon searching his home, deputies found a .22-caliber rifle and a 12-gauge shotgun Weese was prohibited from having. Weese was charged with illegal possession of a firearm and on an outstanding warrant for destruction of property.

Nitro Police Department Review

• {Nitro, West Virginia}...Nitro City Council members asked for an examination of all the police department's special revenue funds going back to 2007 after state auditors found $58,000 in inappropriate expenses made from the police benefit fund. That review reveals several payments to the wife and son of Nitro Police Chief Jack Jordan and that the police department wrote hundreds of dollars in checks to individual police officers to buy Christmas presents, and apparently paid officers in cash for off-duty work overseeing local construction projects. Nitro Mayor Rusty Casto says he and members of city council will look over the records and discuss them at a regular meeting on December 6th.

Man Arrested In Fatal Hit And Run

• {Ceredo, West Virginia}...Tuesday, West Virginia State Police in Wayne County arrested 40 year old Jackie Dale Hewlett of Ceredo and charged him with negligent homicide and leaving the scene of an accident causing death. Police say Candy Mallory of Kenova was killed in a hit and run accident while walking along Route 60 in Ceredo in the early morning hours of July 10th. Her body was thrown about 30 feet over the guardrail and found just west of Camden Park. Four days later, Hewlett's car was found and impounded by West Virginia State Police. Evidence collected from the vehicle indicates that Hewlett hit Mallory.

MTV To Film In West Virginia

• {Charleston, West Virginia}...The West Virginia Film Office has denied tax credits to a company planning an MTV reality series, citing concerns that the show "Buck Wild" will negatively portray the state's young male residents. Director Pam Haynes says New Remote Productions Inc. applied twice, in May and July, but was denied both times. The Film Industry Investment Act offers tax credits of up to 31 percent for companies that film in West Virginia, but Haynes said the law is clear: Participation is prohibited for derogatory productions. The executive producer of "Buck Wild," J.P. Williams of Parallel Entertainment, is a native West Virginian best known for creating Blue Collar Comedy. MTV programming head David Janollari says the network has ordered 12 episodes of the show portraying the colorful antics of a group of friends just out of high school. Filming is set to begin next spring in Sissonville and Charleston.

Logan County Man Pleads Guilty To Distributing Oxycodone

• {Charleston, West Virginia}...Wayne A. Vance, 39 of Verduneville, pleaded guilty Monday in Charleston to distributing  Oxycodone. Vance admitted he sold seven 80-miligram pills to an federal informant on March 25, 2010 and sold four and one half of the same pills to another informant in December 2009. Police say, between June 2008 and March 2010, Vance and associates conspired to sell the Oxycodone in Logan County. Vance faces up to 20 years in prison and $1 million fine when sentenced on February 12, 2012.

Skeletal Human Remains Found

• {Thomas, West Virginia}... DNA testing is under way after skeletal human remains were found on Canyon Rim Road, in the Monongahela National Forest near Thomas, by a father and son from Pennsylvania who were hunting. State Police say the extent of decomposition suggests the body has been there for more than six months, and it's unclear whether foul play was involved. Senior Trooper Jake Kopek says a crime scene team and the state medical examiner removed the body on Sunday.

Fatal Accident Injures Others

• {Huntington, West Virginia}... Police say Shawn Lawrence, 34, of Huntington, died en route to an area hospital Sunday afternoon following a vehicle crash on the 17th Street West bridge in Huntington. Police say Lawrence was driving his vehicle when it crossed the center line and hit an oncoming minivan. Injured in Lawrence's Dodge Neon were Luke Justice, 32, Leann Justice, 27, and 4 year old Tristan Young. Each of them live in Huntington at the same address as Lawrence. Those injured in the van were its driver, Pauline Donnelly, 56, Kenova, and passengers Samantha Hutchinson, 37, Catlettsburg, Kentucky, and Nevaeh Donnelly, 10 months, Proctorville, Ohio.

West Virginia Gun-Buck Season Begins

• {Charleston, West Virginia}...West Virginia hunters headed into the woods early Monday morning as the gun-buck season, which runs from dawn November 21st to dusk December 3rd, began. West Virginia has more than 300,000 licensed hunters ready to bag a buck. Hunters spend an estimated $285 million in West Virginia, much of it in the rural areas of the state that depend upon the deer seasons for a large portion of their annual income. At Gander Mountain in Charleston, hunters were out in full force. Hunters are required to wear at least 400-square inches of blaze orange as an outer garment for visibility and safety.

Winfield Woman Faces Sexual Charges

{Winfield, West Virginia}... State Police in Winfield arrested 34 year old Summer Lynn Burford Saturday after she confessed to having sexual intercourse with a 14 year old boy. Police say the father of the victim went to pick up his son last Tuesday from Burford’s home. After a small child answered the door, the father found Burford and his son inside a locked bedroom. The victim later confessed to having sexual intercourse with Burford. Burford has been charged with six counts of sexual assault and six counts of sexual abuse.

Court Order Stops Charleston Modeling Agency

{Charleston, West Virginia}...The office of West Virginia Attorney General Darrell McGraw has secured a court order requiring Stephen Ross of WV Modeling Agency in Charleston to stop all fashion photography and modeling business. Ross and the agency were ordered to pay $29,997 in restitution to clients and civil penalties. The lawsuit filed by McGraw's office detailed repeated violations of the West Virginia Consumer Credit and Protection Act by Ross and the business, including failure to deliver photographs, portfolios, modeling jobs, a pageant and other services that were promised to customers. The Attorney General's Office started investigating Ross and WV Modeling, which is known by several other names, after receiving complaints from customers who say Ross claimed to be a fashion photographer, model trainer and agent with connections to some of the nation's top modeling agencies. The investigation uncovered a history of deception.

Accident Kills Driver And Teen

• {Point Pleasant, West Virginia}...Cabell County Sheriff's Deputies have confirmed that Steve Stover, 53 of Guyandotte and 14 year old Andrea Bailes of Point Pleasant were killed Friday in an accident on Route 2. According to the sheriff's office, Stover was traveling south on Route 2 when he crossed over the center line into the path of a car driven by Paul Sheets, whose passengers were Sheets' daughter and her friend, Bailes. Stover was ejected from his car and killed. Stover has had several prior DUI's and was driving on a suspended license. Police say he may have been impaired, but that will not be known until toxicology tests are completed. Sheets and his daughter are both still being treated at St. Mary's Hospital for serious injuries.

ATV Accident Kills Elderly Man

• {Harts, West Virginia}...West Virginia State Police say 71 year old Luther Manns was driving an ATV down a gravel road near Rockbridge Road in Harts in Lincoln County around 2:00 P.M. Saturday afternoon when he ran off the road, hitting a mailbox, and was ejected and hit his head on a tree before falling about 25 feet onto a road below. Police say it appears he was killed instantly.

Shots Fired During Police Chase

• {Hamlin, West Virginia}...Lincoln County Police in Hamlin attempted to pull over a vehicle around 12:45 A.M. Saturday morning and ended up in high speed chase where shots were fired toward their cruisers. Freddie Adkins, 42 and Paul Estep, 37 both from Midkiff, were arrested at a hunting camp on McComas Ridge near Blanchard hours after the chase began. Both are charged with assault and brandishing of a weapon, and additional charges are pending.

Logan County Fires Ruled Arson

• {Holden, West Virginia}...Assistant Fire Marshal Jason Baltic says he is investigating between eight and ten different house and trailer fires that have started within the past three weeks in Logan County, and six of them have been ruled arson. Fires have started in Holden, Logan, Chapmanville, Kissler and Man. Baltic said these do not appear to be connected to a string of fires in the Seth community a few weeks ago.

Anyone with information is asked to call the Arson Tip Line at 800-233-3473.

Rahall Co-Sponsors Veterans' Bill

• {Washington, D.C.}...The Bureau of Labor Statistics says the unemployment rate for veterans who have served since September 2001 is higher than that of the general civilian population. U.S. Representative Nick Rahall, the top Democrat on the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, has joined Republican Representative Tom Petri of Wisconsin in sponsoring a bill aimed at helping veterans land jobs. The Mobilizing Opportunities for Veterans Employment Act would require states and other agencies that get federal highway funding to give preference to hiring veterans as construction contractors. It would also apply to public transit agencies and capital grants for those types of projects. The MOVE Act is supported by the American Legion, Veterans of Foreign Wars and American Veterans.

Bluefield Postal Distribution Center Closing

• {Washington, D.C.}...The U.S. Postal Service announced Friday it is closing its Bluefield Postal Distribution Center and consolidating it with centers in Charleston and Johnson City, Tennessee. Darryl Myers, the Postal Service's Appalachian District manager, says action must be taken to reduce the size of the mail processing network. The Postal Service says the move is expected to be completed by April. Some employees may be reassigned to the Charleston and Johnson City facilities or to other vacant positions. U.S. Representative Nick Rahall called the move an "extreme disappointment" and said he called the chief operating officer of the Postal Service to complain that it's dismissing the needs of rural citizens.

Huntington Men Charged With First-Degree Robbery

{Huntington, West Virginia}...James Eric Estep and Robert Scott Pinson, both of Huntington, have been charged with felony first-degree robbery. Police say the two men entered the Gino's Pizza on Norway Avenue in Huntington on November 5th while wearing ski masks and got away with an undisclosed amount of money. Estep was already in jail on an unrelated charge, and Pinson was arrested Friday morning.

Mingo County Man Arrested

{Huntington, West Virginia}...Cabell County Sheriff's Deputies arrested 41 year old Terry Kevin Steele from Mingo County late Thursday night and charged him with possession with intent to deliver, aggravated robbery and being a felon in possession of a firearm. Deputies raided a Super 8 hotel room on 16th Street Road near Interstate 64 in Huntington and found 1,379 OxyContin pills, worth more than $50,000, a Smith & Wesson .38-caliber revolver that was reported stolen from Pratt in 1984 and $311 in cash. Sheriff Tom McComas says the unusual part of this case is that the pills were still in the bottles that are sent from pharmaceutical warehouses to pharmacies.

Jury Returns Guilty Verdict With Mercy

{Huntington, West Virginia}...The jury returned a guilty verdict with mercy Friday afternoon for Cherylethia "Bunny" Holmes. In February 2008, Holmes was found guilty of ordering the 2004 murder of Wendy Morgan in Huntington. The West Virginia Supreme Court unanimously rejected Holmes' appeal of her murder conviction on November 10th. The appeal was based on four errors Holmes claimed happened during the trial. This included testimony from a prosecution witness who testified she was also involved in the shooting death of four teens in Huntington.

Huntington Man Sentenced

{Huntington, West Virginia}...Mitchell Dunn, 52, of Huntington, was sentenced to three to 15 years in prison after he entered a Kennedy plea to attempted murder during a hearing in Cabell County Circuit Court Thursday morning. Huntington Police Chief Skip Holbrook says, around 1:30 A.M. on January 22nd, officers went to the 900-block of Washington Avenue to check out a call of shots fired. They initially didn't find anyone who looked suspicious so they left the scene. About 25 minutes later, 911 started receiving multiple calls about shots being fired again. When police returned, they found Dunn on his porch with a gun which they say he raised and fired a round in their direction. An officer returned fire and struck Dunn in the leg and shoulder.

JROTC Instructor Charged With Sexual Abuse

{Charleston, West Virginia}...Sgt. Edwin Smuda, 58, of Dunbar, who has been a JROTC instructor at South Charleston High School for years, has been charged with sexual abuse after a  teen student told Dunbar Police that Smuda inappropriately touched him while he was at his teacher's home over the summer. According to a criminal complaint, the boy says he was watching a movie with Smuda at his home when Smuda came over and laid on the couch with him and then rubbed his chest and moved his hand down near his waist. The victim says he felt uncomfortable and got up and went into the kitchen, but, when he came back, Smuda came back over to the couch and put his hands down his pants.

Former Marshall University Student Acquitted

{Charleston, West Virginia}...This week, a Cabell County jury acquitted former Marshall University student Danny Mills of misdemeanor charges of filing a false report and obstructing a police investigation. Charges alleged he falsely reported that he and a female friend were gang raped in a dorm room last year by his roommates. The woman filed a report but didn't press charges. Marshall chief of staff Matt Turner says the prosecutor believed his evidence was strong enough to take Mills to trial.

Man Indicted For Sexual Assault

{Winfield, West Virginia}...Casey Ryan Moles, 20, of Red House, was indicted Thursday on charges of second-degree sexual assault, incest and possession of material visually portraying a minor engaged in sexually explicit conduct.  Moles was arrested last year for allegedly sexually assaulting a female relative over more than 10 years. Moles allegedly overpowered and forced his relative to have sex with him from the time she was 5 years old. Moles would have been about 7 years old when the first alleged assault occurred.

Arch Coal Permit Under Consideration

{Charleston, West Virginia}...Legal wrangling continues over whether new federal water-quality rules should apply to a planned Arch Coal mountaintop removal mine. The Environmental Quality Board has lifted a stay on the permit for the New Hill West Mine in Monongalia County, but mining can’t proceed. The board says Arch still needs a new permit from the Department of Environmental Protection. Environmental groups want to force DEP to apply new guidance from the Environmental Protection Agency to the permit. EPA says electrical conductivity, a key indicator of stream health, should be incorporated in mountaintop mining permits. The board had ruled that DEP should change the permit, but Arch appealed. A judge sent the case back, ordering the board to provide more detailed written findings.

Nitro Man Indicted For Murder

{Winfield, West Virginia}...David Matthew Little of Nitro has been indicted by a Putnam County grand jury for  first-degree murder in the death of Yvonne Thomas. Court records state that Thomas was killed in the Red House Hill area of Putnam County in July 2001, and her body was found the following November in Lincoln County. Little is currently serving a sentence of one to five years in the Martinsburg Correctional Facility on drug related charges in Kanawha County. Little will be brought to Putnam County to be arraigned on the murder charges, but a date has not been set.

FBI Investigating Treasurer John Perdue

• {Charleston, West Virginia}...West Virginia Treasurer John Perdue's campaign for governor this year got a boost of nearly $50,000 from 44 of his employees in the West Virginia State Treasurer's Office. Melvin Smith, spokesman for the U.S. Attorney's Office, says he can not provide many details about any FBI investigations into Perdue's finances, but Smith says there's been a few investigations and interviews conducted. The FBI recently released bare-bones details of an investigation into a Mason County land deal between Perdue and Charleston developer Doug Pauley, who gave $1,000 to Perdue's gubernatorial campaign. According to records from West Virginia Auditor Glen Gainer's website, a total of 35 Perdue employees gave $1,000 each to his campaign, which is the maximum amount allowed.

Marcellus Bill Returns To House And Senate

• {Charleston, West Virginia}...In a meeting Wednesday, the Joint Select Committee on Marcellus Shale passed, with nearly unanimous support, a Marcellus regulation bill, sending it from the committee back in front of the full House and Senate. Delegate Tim Manchin, D-Marion, said in consultation with the House clerk that if Governor Earl Ray Tomblin calls for a special session to pass the bill that it will be referred to the joint committee on government and finance with the recommendation that the bill passes. Senator Karen Facemyer, R-Jackson, said she would be a "no" vote on the regulations because there were still discrepancies to work out in regard to amendments that passed without consensus of both the House and Senate members of the joint committee. Facemyer said the bill is sending a very anti-business sentiment with some of its provisions, but Delegate Barbara Fleischauer, D-Monongalia, disagreed, calling the bill a "pretty good balance" of business and environmentally friendly regulations.

Deadly Accicent Near Sissonville

• {Sissonville, West Virginia}...Kanawha County Sheriff's Deputies say Salvador Meza, 25, of Glen Allen, Virginia, was driving southbound on I-77 in the Edens Fork area near Sissonville around 1:25 A.M. Wednesday morning when his vehicle entered the median and flipped. Meza was taken to Charleston Area Medical Center with non-life threatening injuries. Two women were ejected from the car and pronounced dead. Two small children in the car were properly restrained and remained unharmed.

Snake Bite Puts Logan Woman In Intensive Care

{Logan, West Virginia}...Tara Williams, 21, of Logan, was hunting in Ritchie County nearly three weeks ago when she stepped on a copperhead which wrapped around her leg and bit her twice. Williams was driven to a hospital in Parkersburg and then rushed by ambulance to Ruby Memorial Hospital in Morgantown where she has undergone several surgeries and had to have her leg opened to relieve the swelling and pressure. Williams was put on a ventilator Tuesday night and remains in intensive care. The city of Logan is accepting donations for the family and for Williams’ medical expenses.

Substance Abuse Treatment/Home Incarceration Recommended For Lunsford

{Morgantown, West Virginia}...Federal records show pretrial services officer Brian Kilgore is recommending substance abuse treatment and home incarceration for 29 year old Lena Lunsford, the mother of missing Lewis County toddler, 3 year old Aliayah Lunsford. Lena Lunsford has been indicted on multiple counts of welfare fraud and is awaiting trial. Kilgore's petition says a state trooper caught Lunsford and husband Ralph in possession of bath salts in a Clarksburg parking lot on November 1st, and Lunsford is unwilling to cooperate and is withholding information. U.S. Magistrate John Kaull scheduled a bond revocation hearing for November 28th in Elkins.

CVB President On Paid Administrative Leave

{Charleston, West Virginia}...Patti Bradley, the president of the Charleston Convention and Visitors Bureau, is on paid administrative leave following the arrest of the bureau's director of operations, 38 year old Tracie Breedlove Dennis, who has been  fired after being charged with embezzlement, forgery and uttering. Spokeswoman Jama Jarrett says the board voted Wednesday to remove Bradley, who makes $72,000 a year. The Convention and Visitors Bureau's annual budget is around $1.5 million. Police say $100,000 to $237,000 may be missing from its accounts. The criminal complaint says Dennis forged Bradley's name on a $513 check made out to Dennis' young daughter. Bureau checks require two signatures and Bradley's is required on checks below $1,000.

Charleston Shooting Victim Dies

• {Charleston, West Virginia}...Jerry Wayne Baldwin, 35, died at Charleston Area Medical Center General after being shot at a home on Mary Street in Charleston about 2:00 A.M. Tuesday morning. Charges against Donald T. Raines II, who was arrested in connection with the shooting, have been upgraded to murder. Charleston Police say Raines saw his ex-girlfriend coming home with Baldwin. An argument started and seconds later Baldwin was shot. Raines was originally charged with malicious wounding and immediately posted bond, but, when Baldwin died, Raines was arrested a second time and charged with murder.

Hamlin Man Charged With Marijuana Cultivation

• {Hamlin, West Virginia}...Monday night, West Virginia State Police troopers confiscated 759 grams of marijuana and arrested 30 year old Edward H. Arthur of Hamlin and charged with cultivation of marijuana, possession of greater than 15 grams of marijuana, possession of marijuana with intent to deliver, possession of a controlled substance, fleeing in a vehicle and obstructing and providing false information to police. Troopers say, when they arrived at his residence, Arthur attempted to flee on an ATV and stopped and threw a storage container containing marijuana over an embankment. The ATV was also confiscated because Arthur could not show proof of ownership.

Woman Charged With Second Degree Robbery

{St. Albans, West Virginia}...St. Albans Police have charged Ashley Tippett with second degree robbery after they say she robbed the Exxon One Stop service station at the intersection of U.S. 60 and 5th Street Monday night. The clerk told officers that a woman walked into the station and demanded money, threatened to shoot, but never showed any weapon.

Trial Against Correctional Center Set

{Charleston, West Virginia}...The first of dozens of sexual assault and harassment lawsuits that women have filed against West Virginia jails and prisons is set to go to trial December 12th in Kanawha County Circuit Court. Jessica Legg, a Mason County resident, says she was victimized while in the Anthony Correctional Center in 2008.  Huntington attorney Mike Woelfel says he has 61 clients and 50 pending cases against the West Virginia Division of Corrections and the Regional Jail and Correctional Facility Authority and against individual corrections officers.

Man Accused Of Stealing $6,000 Diamond Ring

{Huntington, West Virginia}...Huntington Police arrested Harry Wilks Jr. Tuesday afternoon and charged him with grand larceny and shoplifting, four days after he fled from Mack and Dave's Department Store with a $6,000 diamond ring. On the day of the robbery, Elizabeth Neal, the sales clerk, ran after him screaming for him to stop. When she opened the door, she heard a loud thump as a car hit Wilks, who got up and took off. Neal hopped in the car with a man behind the car that hit Wilks and unsuccessfully continued the chase. Police discovered Wilks has five outstanding warrants for charges including embezzlement, domestic battery and transferring and receiving stolen property.

Benefit Dinner For Milton Toddler

{Milton, West Virginia}...Twenty-three month old Lydia Peyton of Milton was put in a full body cast and is paralyzed from the waist down after a massive cemetery tombstone fell over on her while her family was visiting a gravesite in Cabell County. Earlier this month, Lydia's parents took her and her older brother to a cemetery to get a picture at their great-grandparents grave site. But Lydia's brother lost his balance, fell on the tombstone, and knocked it down. The massive tombstone, more than 500 pounds, landed on Lydia. A benefit dinner is being held at 5:00 P.M. Friday to help the family pay for medical expenses. For more information call Ashton Elementary at 304-576-9931.

Kessler Becomes Senate President

• {Charleston, West Virginia}...Monday night, the Senate selected Marshall County State Senator Jeff Kessler to replace former Senate President Earl Ray Tomblin, who vacated his long-time Senate seat Sunday to become West Virginia's 35th governor. Earlier in the day, Acting Senate President Jeff Kessler won the closed door Democrat caucus 17-11.  Eleven Democrats voted for Kanawha County State Senator Brooks McCabe. Senator Kessler has served as Acting Senate President since being elected on January 12th, 2011 after the Senate voted to adopt a change to the Senate rules to create the new position. Kessler was first appointed to the Senate in 1997 and has been reelected since then.

West Virginia Reports Brush Fires

• {Huntington,  West Virginia}...More than a dozen brush fires were reported in West Virginia, Kentucky and Ohio Sunday. In Mingo County, fires were reported in Baisden and Matewan. In Kanawha County, a fire was reported in Sanderson. Boone County dispatchers say fires were reported in Seth and Madison. Lincoln County dispatchers say fires were reported in West Hamlin and Sias. The brush fire in Sias took firefighters approximately 11 hours to fight.

Charleston Men Plead Not Guilty To Murder

• {Charleston, West Virginia}...Michael Mandrell Johnson, 20, and Marcus Dewayne "Money" Wesley, 25, both of Charleston, pleaded not guilty Monday to murder charges stemming from the 2007 shooting death of 17 year old Leland Chace Miller, who was shot in the back near his Lewis Street home. Police say Johnson, then 16, approached Miller from behind and fired several shots while Wesley acted as a lookout.

West Virginia Diverts 911 Fees

{Charleston, West Virginia}...According to a report by the Federal Communication Commission, West Virginia collected $3.9 million in 911 fees last year, which were diverted to the West Virginia State Police, Public Service Commission and the Division of Homeland Security. The report says West Virginia's Homeland Security office received $1.77 million and used the money to expand a statewide "interoperable," or shared, radio system. State Police got $1.16 million, and the state Public Service Commission received $1 million to expand cell towers. The fees, tacked onto customers' monthly cellphone bills, were designed to pay for equipment upgrades and facility improvements at county 911 centers across the state. Kanawha County Commission President Kent Carper said Monday that folks who pay the 911 fee honestly believed it was for 911. Carper called it a back-door raid on funds.

Barboursville Doctor's License Remains Suspended

{Charleston, West Virginia}...In August, the West Virginia Board of Osteopathy suspended the medical license of Dr. Philip Fisher in Barboursville. Board members said they found probable cause that Dr. Fisher had engaged in conduct, practices and acts that constitute professional negligence. The Board also issued a statement of charges against Dr. Fisher that included 21 counts. In September, the Board held a hearing on the charges. During that hearing Dr. Fisher testified in his own defense. Earlier this month, the Board held a conference call to review the Hearing Examiner’s report. During the call they decided to not take action after Dr. Fisher’s attorney objected based on an act of law. Friday, the Board voted to continue the suspension. Dr. Fisher’s attorney told the board he was appealing their decision. The Board will conduct another hearing on the appeal. DEA agents and police raided two of Dr. Fisher's offices in Barboursville in December, but no criminal charges have been filed.

Trial Delayed For South Charleston Woman

{Charleston, West Virginia}...The trial for 25 year old Leslie Erin Boggs of South Charleston, who is accused of fatally smothering her baby in 2010, was scheduled for this week, but Kanawha County Circuit Judge Paul Zakaib Jr., has agreed to postpone the proceedings in light of recent evidence prosecutors intend to present that call attention to the mother's past as a drug and alcohol user. Prosecutors say Boggs was intoxicated by a combination of liquor and prescription pills the night her daughter, Raynna, died. During an evidence-suppression hearing Monday, Kanawha County Assistant Prosecutor Dan Holstein said Boggs' past experiences with the substances made her aware that blacking out would have been a likely event. Boggs' lawyer, Michael J. Del Giudice, said evidence of the mother's history is not relevant to the case and will only prejudice the jury, while slurring his client. Zakaib denied Del Giudice's motion to suppress the evidence and postponed the trial to February. 

U.S. Supreme Court Rejects Mingo County Lawsuit

{Washington, D.C.}...The U.S. Supreme Court has denied a writ of certiorari filed in July by the Virginia-based Rutherford Institute challenging West Virginia's immunization statute. In April 2009, Jennifer Workman filed a suit against the Mingo County Board of Education, Dr. Steven L. Paine, Dwight Dials and the West Virginia Department of Health and Human Resources. Workman claimed she decided against immunizing her daughter after another child suffered health problems from an earlier vaccination. However, state law does not allow children to be admitted to school unless they have been immunized for diphtheria, polio, rubella, tetanus and whooping cough, unless a physician presents the patient with a permanent medical exemption. Workman claims she received the certificate from a child psychiatrist, but the request was denied, and her daughter was asked to leave Lenore Pre-K to 8 School. The suit states that a local head start program accepted the certificate, but once Workman's daughter completed the program, Mingo County schools refused to admit her. Workman accused school board officials of violating state code by not accepting the psychiatrist's certificate and additionally argued that immunizations are against her religion. Last March, a three-judge panel of the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Richmond unanimously rejected Workman's claim that the immunization mandate violated her religious rights.

Dunbar 7-Eleven Robbed

• {Dunbar, West Virginia}...Police are investigating a robbery that happened at the 7-Eleven on West Washington Street in Dunbar just before 1:30 P.M. Sunday. Police say a a white man; wearing a black mask, blue jeans and a black shirt walked into the convenience store with a gun and demanded money.
  　
  　

Pizza Delivery Driver Robbed

• {Charleston, West Virginia}...Charleston Police say two suspects assaulted and robbed a Pizza Hut delivery driver at 11:45 P.M. Saturday night when he took pizzas to 1537 Dorchester Road, which is a vacant home. The delivery driver was met by two men. When he was waiting for money from one, the second hit him in the back of the head. They took his wallet, an address book, a set of keys and the pizzas. Police have learned the call originated from a land line phone in Hurricane.

Tomblin Officially Sworn In

• {Charleston, West Virginia}...Governor Earl Ray Tomblin was officially sworn in Sunday after serving a year as acting governor. The long-time legislator became acting governor when former Governor Joe Manchin vacated the seat for the U.S. Senate after the death of Robert C. Byrd. Manchin spoke at the inauguration, saying Tomblin was a vital part of the Manchin administration and a true public servant who will take the state into the future. Manchin said Tomblin is the "right leader at the right time" for West Virginia, and he believes Tomblin will continue to be fiscally conservative and maintain the state's balanced budget. West Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals Chief Justice Margaret Workman administered the oath of office. Before taking the oath, Tomblin officially resigned both his post as Senate president and senator from the 17th district. A committee from that district is expected to select a replacement soon.

Mingo County Deputies Conduct Meth Bust

{Ragland, West Virginia}...Daniel Hall, Noah Evans, Noah Evans Jr., Tara Evans, Charles Chafin and Avril Runyon were all charged with operating a meth lab after Mingo County Deputies caught them making meth with two children present in a home on Mystery Mountain Road in Ragland about 1:00 A.M. Saturday morning. Arvil Runyon and Tara Evans are charged with operating a meth lab, three counts exposure to children and three counts of child neglect. Charles Chafin, Daniel Hall, Noah Evans and Noah Evans Jr. are all charged with operating a meth lab, while more charges are pending against Noah Evans Jr.

Transportation Conference Set

{Charleston, West Virginia}...Federal and state lawmakers and officials will give updates on West Virginia's most pressing transportation issues at the 2011 West Virginia Transportation Conference Monday at the Embassy Suites in Charleston. The conference will provide a look at the state's transportation plans and funding challenges on the state and federal levels. Among the speakers will be Representative Nick Rahall, D-W.Va., the top Democrat on the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, state Transportation Secretary Paul Mattox, Representative Shelley Moore Capito, R-W.Va., and the chairmen of the West Virginia House and Senate finance committees.

AirTran Airways To Cease Operations At Yeager Airport

{Charleston, West Virginia}...AirTran Airways, a subsidiary of Southwest Airlines, told its employees Friday that it will end operations in June 2012 at Charleston's Yeager Airport, Knoxville's McGhee Tyson Airport, Miami International, Central Illinois Regional Airport/Bloomington/Normal, Ill., and Dulles International. AirTran Airways says it can no longer support service to those markets due to economic constraints and high fuel prices. Ticketed passengers, passengers holding reservations, or passengers desiring to make reservations for flights to or from these airports do not need to alter their travel plans prior to June 3, 2012. Yeager Airport Director Rick Atkinson says the Charleston-Orlando service, which began in June 2009, was a very successful flight for AirTran. Atkinson says the main reason behind the decision to drop the route has to do with a labor agreement between Southwest and its employees that takes effect next June when Southwest's acquisition of AirTran is complete.

Teens Accused Of Vandalism

{Glen Jean, West Virginia}...Two rollerblading teens are accused of rubbing feces on parts of the New River Gorge National River headquarters in Glen Jean during an apparent spree of vandalism. According to a federal arrest warrant, National Park Service Ranger Nathan Freier alleges that, on August 1st, Daniel Hicks, 16, and Tyler Raines, another teen, stole a flagpole rope and a security camera they had knocked off its mount while they were rollerblading near the building. Authorities did not release the warrant to the public until this week.

Logging Accident Kills Lincoln County Man

{Branchland, West Virginia}...State Police are investigated after Franklin D. Vance, of Falls Branch, in Lincoln County, was found dead in the woods in Silver Mine Hollow in Branchland Friday. Police say the tree that Vance was cutting broke off from the stump and struck him in the head during an apparent logging accident, killing him instantly.

Cedar Grove Man Pleads Guilty To Sexual Abuse

• {Cedar Grove, West Virginia}…Thomas Pomeroy, 57, of Cedar Grove, in Kanawha County, has pleaded guilty to two counts of first degree sexual abuse and one count indecent exposure. The charges stem from alleged contact with an 11 year old from Pomeroy's neighborhood. Court officials say an evaluation of Pomeroy determined he would be a repeat offender. Pomeroy is facing 10 years in prison when sentenced in January.

Man Charged With Fatal Hit And Run

• {St. Albans, West Virginia}…Police say Anthony Clifton Eads has admitted to running over Christopher "Cricket" Booker last week on West Main Street in St. Albans. Eads was arrested Thursday evening and charged with felony hit and run causing death. Police say Eads had been drinking at a bar in St. Albans before he left the bar, and then hit Booker who, according to reports, was lying in the road. A preliminary hearing is set for November 18th.

Mount Olive Inmate Stabbed

{Charleston, West Virginia}…West Virginia State Police are conducting an internal investigation after Jordan Roush, an inmate at the Mount Olive Correctional Complex, was stabbed by Victor Hoffman, an inmate from Putnam County, Monday morning while both men were in the prison yard.  West Virginia Division of Corrections Director Jim Rubenstein says Hoffman used a "shank," or homemade knife. Hoffman, who is serving time on two counts of conspiracy to manufacture and sell a controlled substance, will be charged with a Class I violation, the most serious charge in prison. Additional charges could be pressed against Hoffman pending the state police investigation. Roush is serving time on child molestation charges.

Hospital Rate Hikes Approved

{Charleston, West Virginia}…The West Virginia Health Care Authority says patients at several West Virginia hospitals who pay out of pocket or with commercial insurance will see their bills rise next year. The authority approved rate increases last month for 10 state hospitals. The largest rate increases for inpatient care were 6.75 percent for Thomas Memorial in South Charleston and 7.48 percent for Jackson General Hospital in Ripley. The average cost of a stay at Thomas Memorial will increase for nongovernmental patients to $16,413.63 for the fiscal year 2012, while the average cost of a stay at Jackson General Hospital will increase to $14,346.20.

Charleston Man Charged With Malicious Wounding

{Charleston, West Virginia}…Thursday morning, Kenneth Woodson was arrested and charged with domestic battery and malicious wounding. Charleston Police say Woodson and his father, Charles Woodson, got into a fight with Andrew Watson outside a home on Madison Avenue Monday. Watson was hit several times with a baseball bat and police say, when Jillian Hagelin tried to step in to stop the fight, she was hit in the head. Charles Woodson was arrested Tuesday.

Former CVB Director Charged With Embezzlement

{Charleston, West Virginia}…Tracie Breedlove Dennis, 38, of Charleston, the former director of operations at the Charleston Convention and Visitors Bureau, has been charged with embezzlement, forgery and uttering. According to court documents, Dennis forged president and CEO Patricia Bradly's signature on a check that Dennis requested from the agency's contracted independent accounting firm, Herman and Cormany. The check was made out to Dennis' juvenile daughter for the amount of $513.24. Dennis took the check to her bank and deposited $363.24 into her personal checking account and received $150 cash. Investigators say they have tracked that Dennis took more than $100,000 from the agency. Police say once the audit is complete they expect the amount to grow to possibly more than $200,000. Jama Jarrett, a spokesperson for the Charleston CVB, issued the following statement Thursday evening. "Once we discovered the misuse of funds we contacted the police. We will continue to work with the department through its investigation."  Dennis is expected to be in court for a preliminary hearing on November 18th.

Capito Co-Sponsors Bill For DUI Devices

• {Charleston, West Virginia}...Jan Withers, the national president of Mothers Against Drunk Driving, was in Charleston Wednesday to announce support of a bill, co-sponsored by U.S. Representative Shelley Moore Capito, that would provide a kick-start for the National Highway Traffic Administration's Driver Alcohol Detection System for Safety program. The program sponsors technologies to install optional devices in vehicles that would notify drivers if they were at or above the legal limit to drive, a blood alcohol content of .08 or less. If the driver gives a bad reading, then the vehicle's ignition would not start. Withers says the DADSS program moves closer to MADD's dream of a nation without drunk drivers. Withers says she would like to see the devices used in company vehicles, at first, or for parents' use to monitor teenage drivers. Withers' 15 year old daughter, Alisa, was killed by an underage drunk driver in 1992.

South Charleston Student's Case Heads To Mediation

• {Charleston, West Virginia}...The question of whether 16 year old Ariel Depp, a South Charleston student who is hearing impaired, should be required to attend Capital High School is headed to mediation. Depp's mother, Regina Pine, was in Kanawha County Circuit Court Tuesday morning after recently being charged with truancy. Pine says she believes the charges will be dismissed because she presented proper paperwork to demonstrate that Depp has been home schooled this year. The family filed complaints and lawsuits against the board of education because it requires all high school-aged hearing impaired students in the county to attend Capital High School. Ariel Depp had spent four hours each day on a bus to the school, although she lives only a block from South Charleston High School. Pine says Depp experienced bullying and harassment at Capital High School and she refuses to send her daughter to the school. Judge Charles King ordered the issue to go to mediation and asked for Anne Lambright to be the mediator.

Mount Olive Inmates Raise Money For Leukemia Patient

• {Morgantown, West Virginia}...Amy Chandler of Louisa, Kentucky, the mother of  6 year old Mailyn, a leukemia patient,  says she was shocked to learn the strangers behind a care package for her daughter and a $1,029 check are inmates at the Mount Olive Correctional Complex, a West Virginia prison. Chandler says the inmates raised money for her daughter after they saw a TV report on her illness and the struggle to find a bone marrow donor. Substance abuse counselor Cecilia Matheney says the prisoners, who earn an average of $65 a month, advertised their fundraiser then sat in the rain for two days taking donations. The Chandlers have spent much of the past 18 months at a Huntington hospital.

Former First Lady Laura Bush In Charleston

• {Charleston, West Virginia}...Former First Lady Laura Bush spoke at the Clay Center in Charleston Wednesday as part of the annual Education Alliance dinner. Bush, who is an honorary ambassador for the United Nations Literary Decade, lived in the White House for eight years when her husband George W. Bush was president from 2001-2009. President Bush signed the No Child Left Behind Act into law during his presidency. West Virginia officials are currently considering applying for a waiver to avoid some of that law's guidelines.

Man Seeks Reinstatement Of Home Confinement

{Charleston, West Virginia}...Jerel Garner, 30, of Charleston, appeared Wednesday morning in Cabell Circuit Court. His attorney asked for post-conviction bail to be reinstated, despite a recent violation of Garner's home confinement. Garner was convicted of voluntary manslaughter in the July 5, 2008 shooting death of former Marshall University football standout Donte Newsome who was shot outside a nightclub formerly known as Fluid. Garner received a 21 to 25 year prison sentence. Defense attorneys have asked for a reduced punishment and a new trial, claiming multiple mistakes occurred at his trial. The state Supreme Court granted post-conviction bail after the defense argued the multiple mistakes, combined with the likelihood of a successful appeal, merited such a release. Prosecutors say he left home confinement without permission because his sister needed picked up from party, where her intended ride was drunk. Cabell Circuit Judge Alfred Ferguson decided to take the request under advisement and set a hearing for next month.

Mother Of Missing Lewis County Toddler Makes Public Plea

{Weston,  West Virginia}...Wednesday, Lena Lunsford's attorney released a statement in which Lunsford asks residents of central West Virginia to "keep a vigilant eye" open for any information that may lead investigators to find her daughter, 3 year old Aliyah Lunsford, who was last seen at her home in Weston in Lewis County on September 24th. Lunsford also calls out a family member for allegedly making "uninformed comments" to the media. Investigators recently offered a $20,000 reward to anyone with information that helps them find Aliayah. Aliayah's great aunt Vickie Bowen says FBI Agent Killeen says the extended family or immediate family, was not now, or ever under a GAG order.

Detroit Man Sentenced In Charleston

• {Charleston, West Virginia}...Britt Ellison Nichols, 52, of Detroit, has been sentenced to 60 months in prison and three years probation after pleading guilty to distribution of Oxycodone. Nichols admitted that in April 2010 he traveled from Detroit to Charleston and sold Oxycodone to an undercover informant at the Holiday Express Inn. Nichols admitted he had made at least four prior trips to Charleston, delivering about 250 pills each time.

Charleston Man Faces Sexual Abuse Charges

• {Charleston, West Virginia}...Charleston Police have arrested 33 year old William Dale Clere and charged him with two counts of sexual abuse by a parent or guardian, two counts of child abuse causing the risk of injury and one count of indecent exposure. Police say he pushed his stepdaughter in front of traffic, ordered his stepchildren to eat feces out of the toilet and sexually abused his stepdaughter. Clere also allegedly threw his stepdaughter against a wall, ordered her to watch him have sex with her mother, exposed himself to his stepdaughter, threw a full can of soda at his stepson, striking him in the eye and causing a bruise. Clere was ordered not to have any contact with the victims or any children. His bail was set at $250,000. His preliminary hearing is scheduled for November 17th.

Detroit Man Sentenced In Huntington

• {Huntington, West Virginia}...Monday, 36 year old Toney G. Dickey of Detroit was sentenced to 37 months in prison on federal charges of trying to sell heroin in Huntington. On November 4, 2010, Dickey was approached by Huntington Police Officers in uniform as part of a robbery investigation. They found he had eight bags of heroin weighing about 2 grams. Police also observed Dickey throw a plastic bag containing 58 80-mg Oxycodone. Dickey admitted he intended to sell them. At the time, Dickey was wanted in Detroit for violating probation for possessing Oxycodone with the intent to distribute.

Kroger Contract Approved

{Charleston, West Virginia}...Union members of United Food and Commercial Workers have approved a new three-year contract with Kroger Co. covering 3,893 workers at 41 stores in West Virginia, Ohio and Kentucky. Members approved the contract Monday by a 2-to-1 margin. Kroger Mid-Atlantic Division President Jay Cummins said Tuesday that the contract provides wage increases, affordable health care and a company-funded pension. The union says the contract increases workers' total compensation by an average of $3.10 an hour over the three-year period. The 41 stores include operations in Charleston, Morgantown, Clarksburg, Beckley, Huntington and Parkersburg in West Virginia; Proctorville, Belpre, and Marietta in Ohio and Ashland, Ky.

Charleston Couple Beaten With Bat

{Charleston, West Virginia}...Charleston Police say Kenneth Woodson, known as K.C., got into a fight with Andrew Watson, 26, of Charleston, outside a home along Madison Street on Charleston's west side. Investigators say Woodson went in to the house and got a baseball bat and then beat Watson with the bat. Jillian Hagelin, 26, of Cedar Grove, tried to stop Watson and was then struck with the bat. Watson and Hagelin were taken to CAMC General. Police have issued warrants for the arrest of Charles Woodson, 59, of Charleston and Kenneth Woodson, 19, of Charleston.

Sissonville Man Attempts Robberies

{Sissonville, West Virginia}...Kanawha County Deputies say 58 year old John Beane II of Sissonville walked into Linda's Sports Bar in Sissonville about 8:30 P.M. Monday night wearing a ski mask and armed with a .410 shotgun. Once he was inside and his intentions were clear, Beane was jumped by three or four men, beaten down, disarmed, and held on the floor until sheriff's deputies arrived. Before attempting to rob Linda's, Beane had another unsuccessful holdup attempt at Husson's Pizza only a few miles away. Deputies say he entered the pizza parlor in the same manner, armed with the shotgun, wearing the mask, and demanding money. He fled without getting any cash when the staff called 911.

Charleston Robbery Suspects Sought

• {Charleston, West Virginia}...Charleston police are searching for several men who burst into a West Side home early Monday and robbed three people. Charleston Police Sgt. Eric Hodges says Sasha Parsons-Schifflet, 25, of Fort Knox, Kentucky, was at a home on Garvin Avenue with two other people at about 12:15 A.M. when a black man with dreadlocks burst through the front door, pulled a gun and ordered all three to the floor. Several more black men then came in and robbed Parsons-Schifflet, Liberty Wasson, 28, of Charleston; and Cameron Cole, 22, of Charleston, asking where the rest of the money was, and demanding to see a man named "Ice."

Two Charged With Bank Robbery

• {Huntington, West Virginia}... James Estep, 22, of Huntington, and Frank Jolliff, 22, of Ashland, were arrested Monday and charged with bank robbery. Wayne County Sheriff's Deputies responded to a call about suspicious activity near the Huntington Bank in Lavalette. Deputies say they found the two men milling around a vehicle along Riverside Drive, and that one of the men was wearing a ski mask. They say a witness saw one of the men cover up the license plate on the car with a piece of plastic shortly before officers arrived. Deputies say both men have prior history of armed robbery.

Charleston Man Charged With Burglary And Possession

• {Charleston, West Virginia}...Charleston Police arrested Gary Wayne Mullins Sunday and charged him with burglary and the possession of narcotics with the intent to sell after he was allegedly seen coming out of an apartment on West Washington Street. Police say 35 year old Kevin Comer of Charleston was checking on an apartment he owns when he was surprised by Mullins coming in behind him, acting strangely and appearing to be reaching for a gun. At that point Comer, who has a license to carry a concealed weapon, pulled out his own gun and ordered Mullins to lie down on the floor, where Comer held him at gunpoint until police arrived. Police found a large number of prescription pills and amphetamines in Mullins' car.