Tag: Monongalia County

Pulitzer Prize Winner Says Things Haven't Changed in Fishing Industry

A West Virginia native and WVU journalism school graduate is part of the team that received the Pulitzer Prize for Public Service based on an international investigation of the fishing industry in Southeast Asia.

Over the course of 18 months, Margie Mason was among the journalists from The Associated Press who located men held in cages, tracked ships and stalked refrigerated trucks to expose the abusive practices of the seafood industry in that part of the world.

In a statement, The Associated Press said that the reporters’ dogged effort led to the release of more than 2,000 slaves and traced the seafood they caught to supermarkets and pet food providers across the United States.

Mason grew up in Daybrook in the western end of Monongalia County and graduated from West Virginia University.  She spoke to Beth Vorhees from her home in Jakarta, Indonesia, where she says the AP’s expose did nothing to change how the industry operates.

For the full interview listen below. 

 
 

Monongalia County Sees Flurry of Robberies

A string of armed robberies in Monongalia County is frustrating law enforcement officials and putting some residents on edge.WDTV-TV reports that there…

A string of armed robberies in Monongalia County is frustrating law enforcement officials and putting some residents on edge.

WDTV-TV reports that there were seven armed robberies in the past month.

Sheriff Al Kisner says he believes that robbers happen a lot around the holidays because criminals know that stores are doing a lot of business and have more cash on hand than usual. He says it’s difficult for law enforcement officials to stop the crimes because Monongalia County is such a large area and it’s impossible to know where the robbers are going to hit next.

Monongalia resident Susan Musick says she’s concerned about the situation and hopes officials can do something to curb the crimes soon.

W.Va. Schools Selected to Receive Sustainability Grants

Sixteen schools in eight West Virginia counties will share more than $12,200 in grants for sustainability projects.

The grants are provided by the state Department of Environmental Protection and ZMM Architects & Engineers as part of the Green Apple Day of Service, which is scheduled for Sept. 26.

The day of service gives students, teachers, parents, and residents an opportunity to volunteer with local schools in an effort to create safer, healthier and more efficient learning environments.

The projects are in Jackson, Kanawha, Lincoln, Mason, Monongalia, Putnam, Upshur and Wayne counties.

Veteran Sues Morgantown Landlord over Service Dog

A former Marine has sued two Morgantown rental companies he says refused to rent an apartment to him if he brought his service dog.

  The Dominion Post reports Bradley Knox filed a lawsuit in Monongalia County Circuit Court on Monday against Rice Rentals Inc. and Stadium View LLC.

According to the lawsuit, Knox owns a service dog after being diagnosed with anxiety, depression and post-traumatic stress disorder.

Knox says despite his dog being a certified service animal, Rice Rentals told him he could not rent an apartment because of its policy forbidding animals.

Knox says the policy violates state and federal fair housing acts and the West Virginia Human Rights Act. He seeks unspecified damages.

Representatives from Rice Rentals did not respond to the newspaper’s request for comment.

Two W.Va. Schools Heading to National Science Bowl

Students from two Monongalia County schools are representing West Virginia in the National Science Bowl.

The event will be held Friday through next Monday at the National 4-H Youth Conference Center in Chevy Chase, Maryland.

The State Journal reports Morgantown High School and Suncrest Middle School in Morgantown advanced to the national competition by winning state regional competitions in February.

Morgantown High coach Joe Melia attributes his team’s success to their motivation and love science.

“And they enjoy the competition and they enjoy being able to represent West Virginia so well,” Melia said.

Morgantown High is no stranger to success when it comes to the Science Bowl. Melia said the school has made it to the national finals in three out of the past four years.

“I think four years ago, we got fourth place in the nation. And then last year, we ended up getting 13th in the nation,” he said.

Melia says he likes to have students with a variety of ages on the team so experience can build from one year to the next.

The top 16 high school finishers and the eight best middle school teams in the finals will win $1,000 for their schools’ science departments.

Senate Finance Committee Kills Charter Schools Bill

At the legislature today, infrastructure development around Morgantown will be helped by a bill passing the House of Delegates.  The bill makes adjustments for a tax increment financing district in Monongalia County. The Senate approves a bill that will add judges to four of the busiest circuits in the state court system.  And tonight, we’ll find out more about an effort to strengthen small communities to keep them economically viable on The Legislature Today.

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