West Virginia in a State of Emergency

West Virginia Mayor ‘Relieved’ After Son’s Drug Arrest

Mar 082013

Photodisc/Digital Vision/Thinkstock(CHARLESTON, W. Va.) — A mayor in West Virginia says the arrest of his son on drug charges might be the only way to save him and he’s “relieved” to hear about his incarceration because his son has a better chance of staying alive while in jail.

Charleston Mayor Danny Jones released the statement on Thursday, hours after his 23-year-old son, Zachary, was arrested on a charge of possession with intent to deliver an ounce of cocaine.

“If in jail or prison, I know that Zac has a better chance at living than on the outside. This is because Zac is a hopeless drug addict who has broken the heart and the will of everyone and anyone who has tried to help him,” Jones said in a statement obtained by ABC News affiliate WCHS-TV.

Zachary Jones was arrested along with Moldavian Harris, a 24-year-old from Detroit, and is being held at the South Central Regional Jail on $25,000 bail, WCHS reported.

“This arrest comes on top of a DUI arrest in 2008 and a heroin possession arrest in 2010,” Danny Jones said.

Danny Jones, in his statement, said he has never lobbied for favorable treatment during his son’s past troubles and even told police of Zachary’s whereabouts prior to his 2010 arrest.

“I know there are a few parents that will read this and relate to the heartbreak I feel,” the Republican mayor said. “I plead with those in the law enforcement, judicial, jail and prison system to treat my son no better or worse than any other defendant. My son does not need anyone to save him from taking this life saving fall.”

Zachary Jones was pulled over for speeding when a Metro Drug Unit officer found 25.7 grams of cocaine in the vehicle, according to a criminal complaint filed in Kanawha County Magistrate Court, WCHS reported.

Convicted West Virginia Mine Supervisor Sentenced to 21 Months

Jan 182013

SAUL LOEB/AFP/Getty Images(NEW YORK) — Nearly three years after one of the deadliest mining disasters in modern times, another top official from the Upper Big Branch mine in West Virginia is going to prison.

Former superintendent Gary May was sentenced Thursday to 21 months after he was convicted last year of falsifying records, disabling a methane gas monitor and tipping off workers ahead of inspections at the mine.

Twenty-nine workers were killed by an explosion at the mine in April 2010. Prosecutors said that the blast was the result of then-owner Massey Energy allowing methane and dust to build up.

Last year, former Upper Big Branch security chief Hughie Elbert Stover got three years in prison for lying to investigators. He failed to win his case on appeal and is now in jail.

The mine’s new owner, Alpha Natural Resources, is also paying $210 million in damages as the result of the deadly explosion.

Sen. Jay Rockefeller Will Not Seek Reelection

Jan 112013

US Senate(WASHINGTON) — Democratic Sen. Jay Rockefeller of West Virginia will announce his plans on Friday to retire and not seek reelection, aides confirm to ABC News.

The longtime senator, 75, will make his announcement at 11 a.m. in Charleston, W. Va., joined by family and staff.

Abused West Virginia Wife Allegedly Treated Like ‘Slave’

Jul 122012

West Virginia Regional Jail(PARKERSBURG, W.Va.) — A West Virginia man is accused of torturing his wife for nearly a decade, keeping her as a “slave” in their home, burning her flesh with a hot iron and frying pans, and keeping her shackled while she delivered a still-born baby, according to police.

Peter Lizon, 37, will be charged Friday with malicious wounding. He is currently in jail awaiting a hearing on $300,000 bond and has yet to enter a plea.

Lizon was arrested after his wife, Stephanie Lizon, 43, fled her husband on July 2 while the two went to return a roto-tiller at an equipment rental store in Parkersburg. Stephanie sought refuge in the store’s back office and employees there offered to call police. She refused their help in contacting the authorities, but accepted their help in finding a battered women’s shelter.

According to the criminal complaint, confirmed by police, officials at the shelter described Stephanie as “gaunt and filthy” and covered in scars and burns, including one in the shape of a clothes iron on one breast. She had “mutilated and swollen feet,” according to a witness interviewed by police.

Stephanie told officials she was treated like a “slave” and made to kneel before Lizon each time she entered a room for nearly 10 years since the couple moved to West Virginia from Maryland.

She said she was shackled to a bed when she delivered a still-born baby, which Lizon later buried on the property of their farm in Leroy, W.Va.

The date of that delivery is currently unknown. The couple also has a 1-year-old son, who was born under similar circumstances, officials said.

According to police records, Stephanie’s burns and wounds were photographed at the shelter. Police says they have 45 images depicting abuse. On July 5, officers executed a search warrant of the couple’s home and seized items that included a Sunbeam iron.

Jackson County sheriff deputies said neither member of the couple had police records in West Virginia, but they were arrested together in Maryland in 2004, after shredding a Bush-Cheney campaign sign with a bayonet, according to reports.

“The allegations are heinous, but the real question is whether the allegations are meritorious,” said Lizon’s defense attorney Shawn Bayless. “The allegations are a fabrication, levied by a third party and everyone is rushing to judgment.”

“A domestic battery charge is noticeably absent. The facts will bear out what did or did not happen,” he said.

County prosecutors would not comment on the charges until the hearing.

West Virginia in a State of Emergency

Jun 302012

West Virginia Flag – iStockphoto/ThinkStock(CHARLESTON, W.Va.) — Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin issued a state of emergency for West Virginia Saturday due to the powerful storms on Friday night. 500,000 people are without power in about 27 counties.

President Obama also signed an emergency declaration for West Virginia Saturday. He authorized the Department of Homeland Security and Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to help coordinate the all the disaster relief efforts for West Virginia.

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