Wheeling To Enforce Traffic Ordinance in New Year Amid Panhandling Litigation

The city of Wheeling will start to enforce a Pedestrian and Vehicle Safety Ordinance on Jan. 1 after passing it Nov. 6. The ordinance effectively constricts panhandling. 

Over the past year, cities and counties have passed similar ordinances sharing similar language across West Virginia, with public discussions often centered around regulating panhandlers. Now, with Wheeling’s set to go into effect, other ordinances are complicated by litigation.

In December, legal aid group Mountain State Justice filed a lawsuit against Monongalia County’s ordinance passed in October 2023, arguing it restricts free speech for poor people. Staff attorney Lesley Nash says the group anticipates that enforcement in Wheeling will see the same issue affecting the same people.

“The folks who will face enforcement of the ordinance, whether that’s increased interactions with law enforcement, whether that’s warnings, whether it’s citations or fines — those will be predominantly, if not solely, folks who are poor, who are homeless or who are panhandling,” Nash said.

In Charleston, Councilman Chad Robinson said he “specifically asked [the city attorney] to take the Wheeling language and draft up a bill to start the discussion in our code format.”

Now, that drafted and revised bill has been stalled.

“We’re just kind of waiting to see what Judge Kleeh does,” Robinson said, referring to the district court judge assigned to the Monongalia ordinance lawsuit.

Enforcement in Wheeling will mean warnings, citations, and fees for those who engage in prohibited behavior like standing or exchanging items at intersections.