Tag: Kanawha County Commission

Ethics Panel Issues Additional Guidance on Trinkets Law

  The state Ethics Commission is giving additional guidance to public officials on the use of pictures in social media.

The commission said Thursday that officials may post pictures of themselves attending public events on sites such as Facebook and Twitter as long as the primary purpose is not self-promotion.

The Charleston Gazette-Mail reports that Kanawha County Commission President Kent Carper sought the opinion after the Ethics Commission last month directed officials to sharply restrict the number of photographs of themselves on official websites to avoid violating the new “trinkets” law. The law bans publicly-funded trinkets – from mugs to matchbooks – with officials’ names or faces on them.

Carper said clarification was needed before the next election cycle because some people have made filing ethics complaints “a blood sport.”

Kanawha County Commission Seeks Ruling on Social Media Ethics

Kanawha County Commission President Kent Carper is asking state ethics officials whether county officials can publicly recognize business owners and post photos on social networking sites like Facebook.

The Charleston Gazette-Mail reports the state Ethics Commission issued an advisory opinion saying public officials should post photographs of themselves only on the home page of governmental websites or on biographical pages.

Carper is asking the Ethics Commission for an opinion on whether the rule also applies to social media websites.

Carper sent a letter to the Ethics Commission Wednesday asking about what is allowed on sites like Facebook and Twitter.

Carper also asked if there are restrictions for public officials’ personal Facebook pages, and whether it’s OK to use public resources to manage or post on a personal Facebook page.

New Kanawha County Prosecutor Named

A former federal prosecutor has been appointed as Kanawha County’s prosecutor.
The Kanawha County Commission named Chuck Miller to the position today.

 
Miller will serve the remaining two years of former prosecutor Mark Plants’ term. Plants was removed from office by a three-judge panel earlier this month.
 
Miller had been serving as temporary prosecutor.
 
He previously served as the U.S. attorney for West Virginia’s southern district from 2005 to 2009. He became an assistant U.S. attorney after current U.S. Attorney Booth Goodwin was hired.
 
Miller left the federal office in 2011 and joined the Kanawha County prosecutor’s office as an assistant prosecutor.

Kanawha Prosecutor Won't Appeal Removal Order

  Kanawha County’s prosecutor says he won’t appeal a court order removing him from office.

Mark Plants announced his decision Monday.

A three-judge panel ruled on Oct. 14 that Plants neglected his office’s duties and committed malfeasance in office. The order says Plants has been disqualified from performing a significant portion of the work he was elected to perform.

The ruling came in a petition filed by the Kanawha County Commission seeking Plants’ removal. The judges suspended the ruling for 30 days.

Plants faces charges of domestic battery involving his son and violating a domestic-violence protection order. A Kanawha County judge disqualified Plants and his staff from handling such cases in April after he was charged.

Plants says he plans to open his own law firm.

Three-Judge Panel to Hear Kanawha Prosecutor Petition

A three-judge panel will hear a petition seeking Kanawha County prosecutor Mark Plants’ removal from office.

The Kanawha County Commission filed the petition on Friday in circuit court. The petition says Plants isn’t performing the duties of his office.

On Monday, West Virginia Supreme Court Chief Justice Robin Davis appointed Preston County Circuit Judge Lawrance Miller, Berkeley County Circuit Judge Christopher Wilkes and Pleasants County Circuit Judge Tim Sweeney to hear the petition.

Plants faces charges of domestic battery involving his son and violating a domestic-violence protection order. A Kanawha County judge disqualified Plants and his staff from handling such cases after he was charged. The county hired special prosecutors to handle these cases and the criminal charges against Plants.

Kanawha Commission OKs Patriot Mine Runoff Study

The Kanawha County Commission has approved an engineering study of Patriot Coal's plan to treat runoff from two mines.Runoff from the mines near Eskdale…

  The Kanawha County Commission has approved an engineering study of Patriot Coal’s plan to treat runoff from two mines.

Runoff from the mines near Eskdale has been going into Slaughter Creek for decades. Patriot proposes to divert the runoff to a new treatment facility that would be located in Chelyan. After the runoff is treated, it would be discharged into the Kanawha River.

The study will determine whether the project is safe and feasible.

The commission approved the study on Monday.

Commission president Kent Carper told Patriot representative Drew McCallister that the study’s approval isn’t a sign that the commission will approve the project.

The project also must be approved by the West Virginia Public Service Commission.

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