W.Va. Legislature passes pay raise for lawmakers

By Scott Finn

The West Virginia Senate passed a $5,000 pay raise for lawmakers Friday. It would take effect next year. The bill now goes to Governor Manchin, who says he’ll sign it into law.   

Pay for state legislators will increase from $15,000 to $20,000 a year. They’ll also receive more money for expenses.

On the floor today, most Senators argued that the pay raise was long overdue. Senate Judiciary Chairman Jeff Kessler says the hardest part is leaving your family behind, even when your ten-year-old son is begging you to stay.  Only one Senator, Vic Sprouse of Kanawha County, spoke against the pay raise.   

The pay raise passed, 20 to 13. Voting against the pay raise were Senators Barnes, Bailey, Boley, Caruth, Deem, Facemyer, Foster, Guills, Hall, Plymale, Foster, Sprouse, Sypolt, and Unger.   

Several Senators switched sides since they voted on a similar pay raise last year. Bailey, Caruth, Facemyer and Guills voted for the pay raise last year, but voted against it this year.  Senators Jenkins, Prezioso, and Stollings voted against the pay raise last year but for it this year. 

Manchin dislikes House’s teacher pension plan

By Scott Finn

Governor Manchin is unhappy with a House proposal on pensions for school employees. The House wants to spend up to $78M to help school employees switch from the ailing 401-K-style plan to the state-managed pension plan. Manchin wants the 19,000 school employees who change plans to pay more of the burden.

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If you build it, math will come

By Clark Davis

There’s an old saying that looks can be deceiving. At Marshall, that is certainly the case in one classroom. What looks like a giant toy is actually a machine to make math more understandable.

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The push is on for the nationwide transition to digital television

By Cecelia Mason

By February 19, 2009, most US TV stations will have digital-only signals. That means anyone who has an older TV and is not on cable or satellite will need to get new equipment to watch TV.

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Mountaintop-removal hearing generates strong turnout

Here’s a sample of opinions from supporters and opponents of mountaintop-removal mining who spoke Wednesday at a public hearing. Sen. Jon Hunter, D-Monongalia, scheduled the hearing for a bill he introduced that would effectively ban the mining practice by making it illegal to dump excess rock and dirt into streams.

This video also includes an update on efforts to put Blair Mountain on the National Register of Historic Places.

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Inside the world of graffiti artists, and the cost of their ‘work’

Is graffiti art or vandalism? And what’s the point of risking jail just to spray paint on public property? Producers Jeremy and Chuck Kleine peer inside the world of graffiti artists, and the costs to victims of their work.

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Chamber president discusses First Amendment concerns with bill

Steve Roberts, president of the West Virginia Chamber of Commerce, talks to Anna Sale about the free speech concerns that businesses have with the Worker Freedom Act.

The legislation, which passed the House of Delegates this week, would allow employees to opt out of employer-sponsored meetings concerning unions and politics. This interview aired on the television program Outlook. Below are links ot the interview, and segments that first aired on The Legislature Today and West Virginia Morning.

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• Additional video/audio: House passes legislation; Examination of Worker Freedom Bill

Manchin dislikes teacher pension plan from House

By Scott Finn   

With about a week to go in the session, Governor Joe Manchin says he’s not happy with a House proposal on pensions for school employees.    

The House wants to spend up to $78 million to help school employees switch from the ailing 401-K-style plan to the state-managed pension plan. Manchin wants the 19,000 school employees who change plans to pay more of the burden. 

Manchin says that some school employees received bad advice on their investments. Still, he says it’s not fair for taxpayers to bear so much of the burden.  

But Manchin says he does support a proposed pay raise for lawmakers, from $15,000 to $20,000 a year. He said it’s necessary to attract “new blood” to the body.

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Legislative pay raises, imported trash, gay discrimination bills pass

By Anna Sale and Scott Finn 

Lawmakers came up against an important deadline Wednesday night. Bills had to pass out of their house of origin to stay alive this session. That’s led to a flurry of bills being passed in the last couple of days in the Senate and House of Delegates.

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Blair Mountain nominated for National Register of Historic Places

By Clark Davis  

The site of the 1921 battle of Blair Mountain in Logan County could be added to the National Register of Historic places. But two coal companies that want to mine the area oppose the listing.

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Parents of rape, torture victim upset at plea deals; prosecutor says family never voiced concern

From staff reports 

The parents of a black woman raped and tortured by white men and women in Logan County last September are criticizing Logan County Prosecutor Brian Abraham. 

Matthew and Carmen Williams held a news conference Wednesday in Charleston to voice their frustration at the plea deals in the crimes against their 20 year-old daughter, Megan Williams. 

Four of the defendants have reached plea deals in the case. Alisha Burton and George Messer pleaded guilty to one count of kidnapping and one count of assault during the commission of a felony. Then, the prosecutor reached deals with Karen Burton and Frankie Brewster. Brewster owned the trailer where Megan Williams was held hostage, stabbed and sexually assaulted. Karen Burton is the only person charged with a hate crime in the case. 

Carman Williams says it’s these two more recent plea deals that upset her family.

Carmen Williams: We were okay with the first two deals that he made. We understood that, and we were okay with that. But then, he start getting up to plea bargain with Karen Burton and Frankie Brewster. That was unacceptable as far as I’m concerned. I never, I just thought they should have all gotten, to be honest, life for what they done to my child.

Matthew Williams grew emotional as he talked about the plea deals. He said Prosecutor Abraham betrayed his family’s trust.

Matthew Williams: To me, what’s going on here is a slap in Megan’s face. Not mine, but Megan’s face. They promised her one thing and then destroyed it. I thougth me and Mr. Abraham was on the same page, and I’d like to think we’re on the same page, but it’s difficult for me to go along with this man.

Frankie Brewster has pleaded guilty to second-degree sexual assault in exchange for the charges of kidnapping and assault during the commission of a felony being dropped. She faces 10 to 25 years in prison. Burton pleaded guilty to a hate crime and faces up to 30 years on that and other charges.

The family urged the public to attend the sentencing hearings for Karen Burton and Frankie Brewster on March 3 and March 12 in Logan County.

But Prosecutor Brian Abraham said Wednesday was the first he heard that the Williams family has a problem with the plea bargains. He says he’s kept them informed of his plans throughout the case. 

Abraham: The Williams family has never called me to express any concern, and I have talked with them probably on a weekly basis. During any of our conversations they never challenged what I was doing or questioned me. They’ve never since done that. I hear that there were several individuals from various groups in attendance at this conference. Again, I don’t know what generated the news conference today, whether it was just an attempt at publicity. I don’t know.

Abraham was referring to the Washington, D.C., group Black Lawyers for Justice. He says comments made by representatives of that group have a negative effect on potential jury pools.     

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Blacks more likely to be stopped, searched by police

By Anna Sale

A new report says black drivers in WV are 1.5 times more likely to be pulled over than white drivers. Once stopped, blacks are twice as likely to be searched. The report is based on six months of data collected by police last year, after a new law requiring police to record the race of people they stopped.

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KY man back behind bars after massive manhunt

By Keri Brown

In December, Joshua Michael Ridings of Owensboro, KY, was arrested for raping an 11 year-old North Wheeling girl. Ridings escaped from jail in Indiana last weekend, but he’s now back behind bars after a massive manhunt.

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House passes controversial captive audience bill

By Scott Finn & Tom Miller  

The House of Delegates passed the “Worker Freedom Act” yesterday on a vote of 64 to 33. It allows employees to opt-out of employer-sponsored meetings on politics or unions. Organized labor supports the measure, while some businesses are fiercely opposed. 

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• Video: Examination of Worker Freedom Act

Bigfoot search coming to state in April

By Anna Sale 

Whether Bigfoot exists in West Virginia is a matter of debate. What we do know for sure is that that an expedition in search of the tall hairy ape is happening in April. Pamela Lovins of Kenova is an investigator for the Bigfoot Field Researchers Organization. 

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Inside Appalachia – Feb. 23, 2008

Among this week’s stories: Georgia lawmakers seek to fix surveyor’s 190-year-old mistake and move northern border 1.1 miles to access the Tennessee River, casino legislation stalls in Kentucky, and a food bank for pets.

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Senate committee rejects miner whistleblower bill

By Anna Sale & Scott Finn

With a vote of 8-6, the Senate Judiciary Committee voted down a bill Friday that would have extended whistleblower protections for coal miners. Attorney Nathan Fetty of the Appalachian Center for the Economy and the Environment talks about what was at stake.

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Plans underway for Flash Animation Festival at West Liberty

By Keri Brown

As Web technology continues to advance, new opportunities in the workplace are following. Officials at West Liberty State are gearing up for the 8th annual Flash Animation Festival which attracts students from several states.

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Irene McKinney: Two Poems

Irene McKinney is West Virginia’s Poet Laureate.

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Senate Finance endorses smaller stream list, considers DUI penalties

By Scott Finn 

In the state Senate, lawmakers are preparing for a big day on Friday, when its package of scheduled business tax changes are scheduled for debate.  

On Thursday, the Senate Finance Committee considered a bill to toughen the state’s DUI law. That came a day after it advanced the bill that protects more than 100 of the state’s most pristine waterways – far fewer than the more than 300 the Manchin administration wanted.

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