{Hamlin, West Virginia}...Former Lincoln County commission candidate Phoebe Harless has filed a lawsuit against a half dozen current and former county officials, seeking $57,000 plus unspecific punitive damages. The lawsuit sheds new light on Lincoln County's 2010 Democratic primary, which is the subject of an ongoing federal investigation. Harless claims she was deprived of her civil rights because Wandell "Rocky" Adkins, Sheriff Jerry Bowman, County Clerk Donald Whitten and County Commissioner Thomas Ramey all visited the homes of a select group of Lincoln County voters to have them sign up for absentee ballots even though they weren't eligible. Harless was challenging incumbent Ramey and was leading by 95 votes, but when the absentee and early votes were tallied, Ramey had won. Bowman and Whitten resigned earlier this year as part of a federal plea deal. Ramey is believed to be a focus of the ongoing federal investigation.
