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Hearing Will Determine Whether Two Jefferson County Officials Stay In Office

Two members of the Jefferson County Commission could be removed from office, depending on a court ruling. The commissioners skipped months of meetings in protest of vacancy proceedings.

This is a developing story and may be updated.

Two members of the Jefferson County Commission could be removed from office, depending on a decision from the state’s 23rd Judicial Circuit Court.

Proceedings began Tuesday in a hearing against Commissioners Tricia Jackson and Jennifer Krouse, who came under scrutiny in late 2023 for skipping months of meetings while still collecting their salaries.

Jackson and Krouse described their absence as a protest against vacancy proceedings.

The commission was required to appoint one of three candidates selected by the Jefferson County Republican Executive Committee (JCREC) to a seat vacated by Republican Commissioner Claire Ath in June 2023.

But the commission quickly came to a deadlock. Jackson and Krouse raised concerns over both the JCREC’s nomination process and the commission’s vacancy procedure.

On Facebook, Krouse said the Commission was not provided “actual conservatives,” and that elected Republicans are often “incompetent, self-interested [or] closeted liberals,” MetroNews previously reported.

In November, a judge ordered that Krouse and Jackson resume attending meetings, and they obliged.

The commissioners’ absence drew attention from state lawmakers, who moved to clarify vacancy protocol with a bill that swiftly passed both chambers.

While meetings have since resumed, local authorities said they are still pursuing legal recourse over what they described as a months-long standstill in local government.

In March, the two commissioners were charged with 42 misdemeanors.

And Jefferson County Prosecuting Attorney Matt Harvey said he would follow through with a petition he filed in November 2023 to remove them from office.

Harvey, also a Republican, did not respond to a request for comment on this story Wednesday morning. At the time of the request, a staff member at the attorney’s office said Harvey was at the courthouse for the hearing, which continued through Wednesday.

However, in the November petition — first published online by the Spirit of Jefferson — Harvey described it as his “sworn duty to protect the county, uphold the rule of law and hold all citizens, including elected officials, accountable for their unlawful actions.”

Later in the petition, Harvey argues it is a “mandatory duty” in the West Virginia Code for county commissioners to fill vacancies.

“By refusing to attend meetings, [Jackson and Krouse] have willfully blocked the commission from performing its mandatory statutory duty,” he wrote. They have also “stated their opposition to the slate of replacements put forward.”

Jefferson County Commissioners Tricia Jackson and Jennifer Krouse refused to attend meetings from early September to late November 2023.
*Photo Credit: Jack Walker/West Virginia Public Broadcasting*

During the first day of the hearing, Harvey’s arguments centered around tasks the county commission was unable to complete during the commissioners’ absence, The Journal reported.

Because of their absence, the commission struggled to meet quorum. This meant they were unable to hire 911 dispatchers, provide a grant to victim advocates or apply for funding to improve the county courthouse, the Associated Press reported.

Additionally, Harvey questioned witnesses about posts the commissioners made to Facebook denouncing candidates selected by the JCREC.

In September, Krouse wrote that the candidates all had “strong ties to progressive, green energy,” according to the petition.

This contradicted previous claims that Jackson and Krouse were avoiding commission meetings out of concern for vacancy protocol, Harvey argued.

The office of legal counselors for Jackson and Krouse declined to comment on this story.

In her cross-examination, Jackson and Krouse’s attorney Traci Wiley asked members of the commission why they refused to remove the vacancy procedure from meeting agendas.

Previously, Jackson and Krouse stated they would attend meetings so long as the vacancy was not discussed.

“The law stated we shall appoint,” said Commissioner Steve Stolipher, a Republican, during his testimony. “If I had taken it off the agenda, I would be breaking the law.”

As of Wednesday morning, neither Jackson nor Krouse had yet testified during the hearing.

But on March 14, after she was initially charged with the misdemeanors, Krouse provided a written statement to West Virginia Public Broadcasting likening the legal proceedings to the “corruption” and “poisonous ideology” of politicians in Washington D.C.

“What is happening to Commissioner Jackson and me is a travesty and it is unamerican,” she wrote. “Unfortunately, the political establishment of Jefferson County [has] decided to use the legal system, which they control, to persecute their political opponents.”

In his petition, however, Harvey described it as a duty of his role as prosecuting attorney to pursue the commissioners’ removal.

Jackson and Krouse’s actions left Harvey “no course of action” but to file a petition for their removal, he wrote.

This hearing is separate from the 42 misdemeanor charges Commissioners Tricia Jackson and Jennifer Krouse face in criminal court. For more information on those charges, see our previous reporting.

Two Jefferson County Commissioners Charged For Skipping Months of Meetings As Protest

Two members of the Jefferson County Commission have been charged with 42 misdemeanors for skipping months of meetings to protest commission vacancy proceedings.

Updated on Thursday, March 14 at 10:45 a.m.

Two members of the Jefferson County Commission were charged with 42 misdemeanor offenses in the Jefferson County Magistrate Court Tuesday.

From Sept. 7 to Nov. 21, Commissioners Jennifer Krouse and Tricia Jackson refused to attend seven commission meetings while still collecting their salaries. The commissioners are paid $45,000 annually, plus benefits.

Krouse and Jackson, both Republicans, said their absence was in protest of commission vacancy proceedings because they were dissatisfied with the candidates eligible.

In an August Facebook post, Krouse said that the commission had not yet been provided with “actual conservatives” to review, and that many elected Republicans in West Virginia are “incompetent, self-interested, closeted liberals, or some combination thereof,” MetroNews previously reported.

Krouse and Jackson both declined to comment on the charges, and noted in separate emails to West Virginia Public Broadcasting Wednesday that they are working to retain legal counsel.

In a follow-up email Thursday, Krouse described the charges as “a travesty” and “un-American.” She wrote that members of the “the political establishment of Jefferson County” are using the legal system “to persecute their political opponents.”

Jefferson County Commissioners Jennifer Krouse and Tricia Jackson were charged with 42 misdemeanors in the Jefferson County Magistrate Court Tuesday.

*Photo Credit: Jack Walker/West Virginia Public Broadcasting*

“If this injustice is allowed to stand here, in West Virginia, our republic is lost and we will be no better than the third-world dictatorships we used to fight against,” she wrote. “I believe anyone running for state, local or federal office in West Virginia needs to be vigorously questioned on where they stand regarding turning honest disagreement into a criminal offense.”

The West Virginia State Police (WVSP) was asked to investigate Krouse and Jackson in January.

During the commissioners’ absence, the commission was unable to hire 911 dispatchers, finalize a $150,000 grant for victim advocates and apply for a $50,000 grant to improve the county courthouse, the Associated Press reported.

In response to the commissioners’ protest, the West Virginia Legislature passed a bill this year tightening vacancy protocols.

In a March 12 press release, WVSP said that the commissioners were charged with failure to perform their duties, conspiracy to commit a misdemeanor against the state and several other charges.

The commissioners were arrested following a commission meeting Tuesday morning. They were arraigned on a $42,000 bond, which has since been posted.

**Editor’s note: This story was updated to include a comment from Jefferson County Commissioner Jennifer Krouse.

As Beavers Return To W.Va. Wetlands, Conservationists Promote Coexistence

Local conservationists are building fences around trees in wetlands across West Virginia and beyond to protect them from beavers and promote coexistence between species.

Donning rain boots and gloves, volunteers trudged across a Charles Town wetland Tuesday to prepare the habitat for a pair of unexpected residents.

Jefferson County’s Cool Spring Preserve is currently home to at least two beavers, possibly mates, according to local conservationists. If trail camera photos did not offer proof enough, their presence is made clear through bite marks on trees and a growing number of dams in Bullskin Run, the local stream.

Beavers are native to wetlands across North America, including those in West Virginia. But they were hunted to near-extinction during the 18th century fur trade. With fewer people hunting them for their pelts, beavers are growing in population across the continent. According to many conservationists, that’s a good thing.

Alison Zak serves as founder and executive director of the Human-Beaver Coexistence Fund. The group develops nonlethal strategies to manage beaver populations across the mid-Atlantic.

Zak said that beavers play a key role in bolstering biodiversity, storing groundwater and filtering pollutants in wetland ecosystems. But they also bring what she describes as “beaver problems,” which fall into two main categories: flooding and tree damage.

When beavers build dams, they can redirect the flow of water and prompt flooding. This can disturb roadways and personal property, so conservationists often fence off culverts so beavers cannot disrupt the flow of water with their dams.

Dams have appeared along Bullskin Run, a stream that cuts through Cool Spring Preserve in Charles Town. Local conservationists say it is the work of a pair of beavers.
*Photo Credit: Jack Walker/West Virginia Public Broadcasting*

Beavers can also chew trees that protect rivers from erosion, as well as saplings planted as part of reforestation efforts. In response, conservationists build wire fences around the bases of trees that need to be protected from local beavers.

That is what brought a team of volunteers onto the preserve Tuesday: to help build fences that ensure trees and beavers can coexist in West Virginia and to strengthen wetland ecosystems.

“A lot of people aren’t aware beavers are around unless, all of a sudden, they come across very obvious signs of beavers, maybe even causing problems on their property,” Zak said. “But also, we’re seeing an increase in tolerance toward beavers, and people wanting to use nonlethal management and wanting to coexist.”

Tuesday’s volunteers placed new wire frames around the bases of trees with overly tight fences or no fences at all. They took particular care to cover saplings, and to give trees enough space to grow freely.

KC Walters, associate director of conservation at Potomac Valley Audubon Society, organized Tuesday’s event. She said that coexistence strategies like these help people come together to solve environmental problems.

“It’s not just conservation, and not just about the relationship with wildlife,” she said. “It’s also about the relationships of the human organizations that exist in keeping us all working together for a common goal.”

Zak said she hopes volunteers left Tuesday’s event with a better understanding of how conservation works.

“I hope they got a little taste of how complex it can be, but how also doable it is,” she said.

Lily Davis unlinks segments of an old wire fence around the base of a tree at Cool Spring Preserve in Charles Town.
*Photo Credit: Jack Walker/West Virginia Public Broadcasting*

Senate Revisits County Commission Vacancy Protocol After Jefferson County Controversy

The West Virginia Senate is currently discussing amendments to state protocol for filling county commission vacancies, following a controversy in Jefferson County late last year.

On Tuesday, the West Virginia Senate discussed amendments to state protocol for filling county commission vacancies, following a controversy in Jefferson County late last year.

From Sept. 7 to Nov. 31, 2023 two members of the Jefferson County Commission — Jennifer Krouse and Tricia Jackson — refused to attend meetings. This was due to a disagreement over which candidate would fill a vacant seat, and the protocol for how they would be selected.

During this time, they continued to receive pay from their positions on the commission, MetroNews previously reported.

In late November, a judge required the two commissioners to resume attending meetings, but they continued to express concern over the procedure.

Counsel for the Senate Government Organization Committee explained that these events led to the creation of Senate Bill 542, which would update protocol for filling vacant seats on five-person county commissions, like the one in Jefferson County.

Under the bill, five-member commissions unable to agree on an appointee would create a list of eligible candidates and strike names from the list one at a time.

Commissioners would take turns striking names in a predetermined order based on the political party of the vacating commissioner and the tenure of voting commissioners.

Ultimately, the last remaining person on the list would fill the vacant commission seat under the new bill.

The Senate Government Organization Committee voted unanimously to send the bill to the Senate floor with the recommendation that it be passed. Before passage, it will undergo further discussion from the full Senate.

WVU Medicine Reopens Diabetes Self-Management Program In Martinsburg

WVU Medicine is accepting new applications for its diabetes self-management program based in Martinsburg at the Berkeley Medical Center. The program runs for six weeks in February and March.

WVU Medicine is accepting new applications for its diabetes management program based in Martinsburg. The program helps participants learn strategies for independently managing their condition.

During the program, participants will explore topics like healthy eating, exercise, stress management, meal preparation, nutrition and healthcare access, according to a press release.

Dana DeJarnett, health promotion coordinator for WVU Medicine, said the self-management program also helps participants develop problem-solving and action-planning skills, which makes program lessons more effective.

“It may not sound like anything specific to diabetes, but it really helps you focus on what are the most important things you need to take care of,” she said. “The things that you need to know to manage your health on a day-to-day basis.”

As part of the program, participants will develop action plans each week, incorporating new habits they hope to implement and community resources they are going to integrate into their daily routine.

WVU Medicine’s Berkeley Medical Center and Jefferson Medical Center assumed oversight of the program last year, running it in partnership with Quality Insights.

But originally the program was overseen by the Berkeley-Morgan County Health Department, funding it through a state grant beginning in 2013.

From DeJarnett’s perspective, the program is valuable as a supplemental resource for individuals already receiving primary care for their diabetes.

“It helps you take control of your health. It helps you learn that there are steps that you can take, and that you can have control of,” DeJarnett said. “And it doesn’t take away from what you’re doing what your physician tells you to do.”

WVU Medicine’s new program will run six weeks, meeting every Thursday from 9 to 11:30 a.m. from Feb. 22 to March 29 at the Dorothy McCormack Center, located at 2000 Foundation Way in Martinsburg.

The program is free but requires advance registration. Individuals living with or caring for someone with diabetes are eligible to apply for the program through Feb. 14.

Prospective participants can register or seek further information by contacting DeJarnett at dana.dejarnett@wvumedicine.org.

ACLU: Government Officials Should Think Twice Before Blocking On Social Media

ACLU-WV filed a lawsuit against Jefferson County commissioner Steve Stolipher for violating the First Amendment rights of a constituent.

The American Civil Liberties Union of West Virginia (ACLU-WV) has filed a lawsuit in the Jefferson County Circuit Court against Jefferson County Commissioner Steve Stolipher. In May 2022, Stolipher blocked constituent Christy Stadig, a resident of Harpers Ferry, from his official government Facebook page.

Stadig had responded to a comment on Stoliphers Facebook page asking him about what he had posted. She got a notification that the commissioner had responded to her comment but when she went back to his page, her original comment and his response had been deleted. A few hours later, she realized she had been blocked.

Stadig went to a Jefferson County Republican Executive Committee meeting where she asked Stolpher to unblock her from his Facebook. He responded by laughing at her request.

Aubrey Sparks, the legal director at ACLU-WV, says that blocking a person from an official Facebook page is one of the most common complaints her department gets. She says sometimes there is no malicious intent, just a lack of knowledge.

“Sometimes public servants just legitimately don’t know that this is something they aren’t permitted to do, and so they rather block someone than really engage.” Sparks said. “Blocking is a problem that is incredibly widespread, and we want to make the point that it’s not okay at any level of government…it is a big deal to our client because she was relying on that access to information to learn about her representatives and policies that would affect her as a resident of Jefferson County.”

Del. Kathie Hess Crouse, R-Putnam, has three Facebook pages. Her personal, campaign, and official Delegate page. While she occasionally blocks or deletes from her personal and campaign pages, she does not on her official delegate page. She says she engages with those with similar and opposing views.

“Most of the time I let them vent, I’ll read what they’ve said, if it’s something I need to take into consideration I will, but I let them vent and say whatever they want to say,” Crouse said.

Government official’s social media pages are seen as public forums and blocking a constituent is restricting their freedom of speech. The ACLU-WV has a toolkit to let people know their rights if they have been blocked by a government official.