Criminal Justice Reform And Substance Use Treatment On This West Virginia Morning

On this West Virginia Morning, the West Virginia Legislature will convene for its 2021 regular session this week. We hear from a few lawmakers about their priorities this session for criminal justice reform. Also, in this show, we hear the second part in a series from the Ohio Valley ReSource on addiction treatment during the pandemic.

A Republican lawmaker in West Virginia who resigned after posting an anti-gay slur and was re-elected a month later is drawing fresh criticism. Liz McCormick reports.

The deaths of three thoroughbreds at Hollywood Casino at Charles Town Races has caught the attention of an animal protection group. WVPB has the story.

When the COVID-19 pandemic began nearly a year ago, addiction treatment doctors knew it would make their jobs even harder. The combination of isolation, stress and coronavirus restrictions on treatment has been deadly, pushing overdose deaths to a record level. In the second of a series of reports, the Ohio Valley ReSource’s Corinne Boyer asked experts from around the Ohio Valley and in the new White House administration how they are treating addiction during the pandemic.

Last year, members of the West Virginia Legislature passed a handful of laws aimed at reforming the state’s criminal justice system. But no one could’ve anticipated the toll the coronavirus pandemic would have, months after adjourning — including in state-run correctional facilities, where more than 3,000 incarcerated people and staff have been infected at one point or another since March. This year, advocates aren’t only planning to advance the work they did last year, but they’re looking at bills under a new, public health related light. Emily Allen reports. West Virginia Morning is a production of West Virginia Public Broadcasting which is solely responsible for its content.

Support for our news bureaus comes from West Virginia University, Concord University, and Shepherd University.

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