Investigation Story Archives - Page 2 of 6 - West Virginia Public Broadcasting

New Homeland Security Inspector General Creates ‘To Do’ List

“My work is when there are allegations of fraud, waste, abuse, mismanagement, and maybe even matters that rise to a level of criminal investigation,” Honaker said.

As a House of Delegates member in the 2023 general session, Mike Honaker, R-Greenbrier, said he had no idea in voting for House Bill 3360, to create the Office of the Inspector General in the Department of Homeland Security, that he would end up holding that position.

“Absolutely not,”’ Honaker said. “It was never discussed, and never occurred to me.”

Appointed by Gov. Jim Justice, Honaker said his primary duty is to conduct inquiries and, where needed, full scope investigations.

“My work is when there are allegations of fraud, waste, abuse, mismanagement, and maybe even matters that rise to a level of criminal investigation,” Honaker said. “Those investigations would be conducted in conjunction with the appropriate law enforcement agency if that were something that was necessary.”

Honaker is Inspector General for all the agencies that are under the umbrella of the Department of Homeland Security. Those include West Virginia State Police, Division of Corrections, Fire Marshal’s Office, Parole Board, the Division of Emergency Management, the Division of Justice and Community Services. He says there’s “about somewhere north of 5000 employees” in Homeland Security positions.

Honaker said he will work with the Corrections Inspector General on the many allegations and lawsuits facing that department and conduct his own prison inspection tour.

“I’m going to be traveling around and personally visiting some of the prisons and jails and looking at the actual conditions there to make sure that we’re doing the right thing,” he said. “There is obviously pending litigation, so we are constantly reviewing that information as it comes in to see if there are more things we need to be doing or looking at to make adjustments.”

He hopes to create an internal homeland security fraud, waste, and abuse hotline.

“So that employees within organizations that maybe see things that they would not otherwise be comfortable reporting, they could do that anonymously,” he said.

Honaker said he will let the State Police investigations run their course, not ruling out any reviews.

“I don’t think there’s any cause for me to become involved because those investigations have been taking place for some months now,” Honaker said. “They are being appropriately investigated. There could be some cases that we would go back and review to maybe make sure they were handled appropriately with the previous administration.”

Honaker plans to conduct staff inspections of all departments and agencies, to ensure accountability.

“Are there checks and balances? Are there systems of accountability to make sure that these things are not occurring in agencies, whether it’s mismanagement of money or fraud, waste or abuse,” Honaker said. “We would only know that by actually sitting down with employees, reviewing files, interviewing employees, about their position.”

Honaker said he will report investigation findings to Justice and Homeland Security Secretary Mark Sorsaia. He said he will not determine guilt or innocence.

“What I will fully do is conduct thorough, complete, fair, impartial investigations, to determine the facts and to produce reports that would allow the Secretary or the governor to make logical conclusions as to whether the allegations are substantiated or not,” he said. “I have no interest in being anything less than completely fair and impartial.”

PSC: Three Upper Kanawha Valley Water Districts Seriously Impaired

Gauley River PSD in Nicholas County serves 1,200 customers, including 1,000 inmates at Mount Olive Correctional Complex. An investigation into the utility was launched last year following an interruption in water service to the prison that lasted several months.

State regulators say three upper Kanawha Valley water districts, including the one that serves the state’s maximum-security prison, are seriously compromised in their ability to provide water service to customers.

The Public Service Commission (PSC) of West Virginia has directed West Virginia American Water Company to take over the Armstrong Public Service District (PSD), calling it a failed utility.

Armstrong PSD provides water and sewer services to nearly 900 people in the Montgomery area of Fayette County.

The PSC stopped short of ordering a takeover of Gauley River Public Service and Kanawha Falls Public Service Districts but cited both under the 2020 Distressed and Failing Utilities Improvement Act.

The Gauley River PSD purchases its water from Kanawha Falls PSD and Summersville.

The PSC ordered West Virginia American Water to provide financial, managerial and technical support to Gauley River and Kanawha Falls PSDs. Management contracts must be filed for review within 30 days.

For more information, visit the PSC’s website: www.psc.state.wv.us.

W.Va. State Police Superintendent Announces Reforms, Changes, Upgrades

West Virginia State Police (WVSP) Col. Jack Chambers is no longer the “interim” superintendent of the agency. He is now the full-time superintendent, according to Gov. Jim Justice.

Chambers came over from the Capitol Police four months ago after former WVSP Superintendent Jan Cahill resigned amid a flurry of charges of trooper wrongdoing.

In the governor’s Wednesday briefing, Chambers addressed questions about ongoing state police investigations, including the extent of hidden camera recordings in the police academy women’s locker room. He said he has sent letters of apology to 71 women, all law enforcement officers filing lawsuits, who have used that women’s locker room in academy training.

“We did send an apology letter out to any female that may have been victimized by a hidden camera in the locker room,” Chambers said. “Again, unacceptable. I said that on day one.”

Among recent changes, Chambers said state police are installing a new 60 camera security system, have made an academy curriculum adjustment to provide a better educational environment, and leadership will have open communications and regular meetings with all female academy trainees.

“We’ve upgraded our female barracks with in-house female staff members,” he said. “It’s actually a full-time sergeant and a female who went to Academy. We’ve had females over the years but that is her main job now.”

Chambers also said, after a number of retirements, transfers and reassignments within his four-month tenure, he’s also fired four troopers.

“We’ve separated employment with four troopers that were failing to meet the standard and expectations of the state police,” Chambers said.

Chambers said he’s changing daily activity reports on hours worked and approved. He said a first line supervisor has to approve any hours worked.

“No matter what your rank is, it goes to the next level supervisor for approval,” he said.

He said the FBI will teach the academy civil rights class, emphasizing the seriousness of acting under “the color of law.”

Regarding specifics in the multiple WVSP investigations that have been ongoing for months, Chambers said he is still limited on what he can reveal at this time.

He said the state charges for domestic battery on an accused trooper is in the hands of the Ritchie County Prosecutor. He noted that alleged trooper rapes are currently under investigation by federal investigators, along with civil litigation.

He also said the hidden camera at the police academy is currently subject to federal and internal investigations and both of those are in action now.

“Our academy is not completely broke,” Chambers said. “Some would think that, but it is not. Staff changes have been made. I can say the camera systems are in the process of being upgraded to the top of the line so we will know who’s there and who’s not.”

Chambers said he is in the process of working with the governor’s office to create a WVSP/Marshall University Health Line.

“A line to call in if someone at the academy is having a problem or an issue,” Chambers said. “We want them to have someone to speak to if they feel the need.”

State Police Public Liaison Tasked With Redemption

Mitchell says from a day-one cadet to a retiree, troopers vow to maintain the core values of respect, integrity, courage, compassion, honesty, and justice.

In his new position as West Virginia State Police Chief of Staff Services, Maj. James Mitchell acts as financial CEO and oversees the cadet academy, public relations, legal relations and a dozen or so other departments. The law enforcement veteran and Beckley native says he wanted to be a trooper ever since he saw the men and women in green when his farming family took him to the state fair as a youngster.

“I joined the state police in January of 2000, that was 23 years ago,” Mitchell said. “I was a city police officer before that in Beckley for about six years, and I was in the military before that. So I’ve got 33 years this year as a law enforcement officer.”

Mitchell said when he learned of the hidden camera in the women’s locker room and all the allegations of wrongdoing, it broke his heart.

“It affects every single person wearing this uniform,” he said. “Not just the state police, it affects other agencies as well, because the public will group law enforcement together, regardless of the color of the uniform. It was heartbreaking not just to me, but to so many of the people in law enforcement that I’ve talked to. It’s happened, we can’t deny that. But we can make sure it doesn’t happen in the future.”

Mitchell said cadet training at the State Police Academy evolves over time and changes in social culture. He said the loss of integrity by a few in the department makes balanced training even more important.

“Number one, we’re honest about it,” Mitchell said. “We expressed to them the importance of Stress Inoculation Training. So, we’re going to talk about the balance of it. We try to make sure at the beginning of training, that they can respond and function under a life or death, high stress environment. Then it changes more to a mentoring style of training the mind when it comes to criminal work. They gain understanding of criminal investigations, crime scene investigation, traffic investigation, and officer survivability techniques. So, there’s a great balance of training, and it fluctuates.”

Mitchell says from a day-one cadet to a retiree, troopers vow to maintain the core values of respect, integrity, courage, compassion, honesty, and justice.

“I think their value system is very important,” he said. “It will hold them true throughout their career, and then they won’t have problems like we’ve experienced. Unfortunately, what some have done is a violation of the core values.”

Mitchell said he could not discuss the active investigations now underway involving alleged casino theft, the hidden camera and destruction of evidence, alleged rape and improper conduct – or pending litigation by a growing number of women law enforcement officers concerned with possible violations while training at the academy. He was asked, “Was there a problem with a few bad apples, as Gov. Jim Justice has said, or was there a counterculture uncovered that put integrity on the backburner?”

“All of the things that you ask, I’m sure, are being looked at in the investigations,” Mitchell said. “There will come a day though, we hope it to be sooner than later, where we’ll have all the facts of this and we’ll be able to openly discuss it.”

He explained that the wholesale leadership and personnel changes made by new Superintendent Jack Chambers come with the qualification of choosing your own top office staff.

“When a superintendent comes into office, he has by code, the ability to choose his own senior staff,” Mitchell said. “Anything above lieutenant – captain, major, lieutenant colonel, are all appointed positions by the superintendent.”

He said the State Police are working closely with Homeland Security and Gov. Jim Justice’s office, but all final decisions are made independently by Chambers.

“They trust him to do this job, that’s why they appointed him,” Mitchell said. “They trust him to make the right decisions, and they’re being very respectful and very supportive of him.”

Mitchell said 99 percent of the agency, civilians and sworn personnel alike, are excellent, hardworking, compassionate people that really want to do a great job and want to arrest those who are doing wrong and protect the innocent.

He said from what he’s heard, the rank and file, boots-on-the-ground troopers, female and male, still have the public trust and respect.

“Most people here support law enforcement, support the military, they’re very patriotic, they love their country. So we’ve been very blessed when it comes to good people,” Mitchell said.

Mitchell said for the future of the West Virginia State Police, it’s about societal adapting while committing to those core values.

“We want to continue to change where changes are necessary, continue to stay with our principles that we know are true and move forward to continue to provide a service that’s exemplary,” Mitchell said.

State Police Superintendent Tells Lawmakers Investigations, Changes Continue

Col. Chambers said investigations into hidden cameras, theft, rape, destruction of evidence and invasions of privacy are moving toward resolution.

Speaking to the Joint Standing Committee on Finance Monday, Interim State Police Superintendent Col. Jack Chambers said since he returned to the department after an earlier 26-year stint with the West Virginia State Police, he’s worked diligently to get numerous issues, including financial, clarified and cleaned up.

“I’m not gonna be able to do it overnight,” Chambers said. “I’m working with the help of the department. There are a lot of good people down there. Got a few we probably don’t need, but for the most part, we have a great department.”

He said investigations into hidden cameras, theft, rape, destruction of evidence and invasions of privacy are moving toward resolution.

Chambers told Finance Committee members that there were some questions on the sign off of time sheets and other clerical issues. He said after five days on the job he sent a directive out.

“There’s monitoring and steps of verification now to check off everybody’s timesheet,” Chambers said. “The West Virginia State Police is moving towards (using the automated payroll system) Kronos.”

Committee member Sen. Eric Tarr, R-Putnam, asked Chambers about the investigation into possible misuse of specified vehicle purchase and maintenance funds.

Chambers said the WVSP is fully complying with information requests from the Auditor’s Office. He said before his arrival, there may have been vehicle funds rerouted outside guidelines.

“Probably we used some of this money that was allowed for use and it wasn’t for vehicles, but for something else, because another fund was short,” Chambers said. “Do I think you’d have a bunch of money that people were going on vacations and things like that? Absolutely not.”

He pledged to follow all stipulations, policies, and guidelines for the tenure of his leadership.

“If we were outside those guidelines, then shame on us,” Chambers said. “I promise, if I’m there one year, two years, or six years or 12 years, I’m not gonna go outside the guidelines. I’ll just do without. It’s as simple as that.”

Underage Women File Notice To Sue Over WVSP Hidden Camera Incident

Three young women who say they attended West Virginia Junior Trooper programs at the State Police Academy when they were under 18 years old have filed a notice of forthcoming legal action against the West Virginia State Police.

Three women who say they attended West Virginia Junior Trooper programs at the State Police Academy when they were under 18 years old have filed a notice of forthcoming legal action against the West Virginia State Police (WVSP).

Wheeling Attorney Teresa Toriseva represents these women, and up to 20 other female law enforcement officers from around the state, all concerned that they may have been secretly videotaped in the academy women’s locker room.

An active investigation is underway, led by Interim WVSP Superintendent Jack Chambers, looking into the extent that a hidden camera was placed and operated inside the female locker room at the State Police Academy.

Toriseva said in a press release that her clients and other female Junior Trooper program attendees used the female locker room at the academy during the time the cameras may have been in use. She said the taping of the females in the academy did not end until 2020, the same time the Junior Trooper Program was discontinued.

“The deeper the investigation goes, the more shocking the conduct,” Toriseva said in the release. “All the women who came through the academy during the time the camera or cameras were being operated hope they were not filmed. With the admitted destruction of evidence, the burden is now on the West Virginia State Police to prove these women were not filmed.”

Chambers has apologized to any women who were victimized by the hidden camera and has stated he is working to identify all potential victims of the crime.

In the notice to sue, Toriseva said as an alternative to filing suit, her clients request a meeting to discuss these allegations and a possible resolution.

“Voyeurism is never a single incident,” Toriseva said. ”We expect many more in addition to these new three to come forward as the matter progresses.”