West Virginia

Lawyer in West Virginia AG’s office shoots and wounds himself after standoff with police

A lawyer in West Virginia Attorney General’s Office shot and wounded himself after a three-hour standoff with Charleston police at his home on Monday. The lawyer, 49-year-old Mark Bramble, worked in the workers’ compensation division for the past year and had submitted his resignation last week, report the Charleston Gazette,…

Aug 13, 2013 12:02 PM CDT

Acquitted lawyer says shooting charge has ruined his career and political aspirations

A West Virginia lawyer says his problems haven’t ended with his acquittal for shooting a man. Jurors acquitted Hiram Lewis of Procious, W.Va., last week, report the State Journal and the Daily Mail. He had been charged in a revised indictment with malicious wounding and domestic assault for shooting Stephen…

Jul 3, 2013 4:02 PM CDT

Attorney’s law license at issue over petition for involuntary mental exam of restaurant proprietor

A West Virginia lawyer is at trial in a legal ethics case, accused of having applied under false pretenses to have a cafe owner taken into involuntary custody for a mental health examination. H. John Rogers was previously convicted of two related misdemeanor counts in Wetzel County Magistrate Court. Attorney…

Jun 5, 2013 3:50 PM CDT

After lawyer is indicted in witness-interference case, client’s trial is postponed

A West Virginia lawyer representing a police officer in a felony case has been criminally charged, along with an investigator, in an alleged conspiracy to interfere with a witness. Attorney Paul J. Harris, who practices in Wheeling, and the private investigator, Franklin D. Streets Jr., were indicted by a grand…

May 21, 2013 1:40 PM CDT

Former public defender gets 1 year in federal prison for submitting false payment vouchers

A former panel attorney who worked as a public defender in multiple counties in West Virginia has been sentenced to one year and one day in federal prison for submitting false payment vouchers for her services to the state. Lisa A. Weese, who has since been disbarred by consent, was…

May 13, 2013 5:30 PM CDT

Lawyers who didn’t notify insurance carrier of ‘nuisance case’ lose coverage appeal

Husband-and-wife West Virginia lawyers who practiced together in the same Charleston firm initially didn’t report to their insurance carrier what they subsequently described as a pro se “nuisance case” over a $290,000 check that the plaintiff said was wrongfully issued to one of the firm’s attorneys. But after the plaintiff,…

May 13, 2013 5:00 PM CDT

Teen, 14, arrested after refusing to remove NRA T-shirt

A West Virginia middle school student was arrested and pulled from school Thursday, accused of creating a disruption after he refused a teacher’s demand that he remove a T-shirt that displayed the logo of the National Rifle Association and a rifle. Jared Marcum, 14, his stepfather and lawyer maintain the…

Apr 22, 2013 4:14 PM CDT

Courthouse locked after county sheriff is shot to death outside; ‘nobody’s safe,’ magistrate says

A West Virginia courthouse was on lockdown Wednesday afternoon after the county sheriff was shot to death outside. Mingo County Sheriff Eugene Crum liked to eat lunch in the same spot within a block of the courthouse in Williamson while sitting in his patrol vehicle, according to the Associated Press,…

Apr 3, 2013 8:49 PM CDT

Judge whose angry rant was caught in YouTube clip is suspended for nearly 4 years

An admittedly intemperate family court judge has been suspended without pay for the remaining years of his term by the West Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals. In one angry rant from the bench that has been viewed on YouTube more than 200,000 times, Putnam County Circuit Court Family Law Judge…

Mar 28, 2013 5:02 PM CDT

Lawyers in courthouse fistfight file dueling lawsuits

Two lawyers involved in a January fight in a West Virginia courthouse have filed dueling lawsuits. Stephen Sean Murphy sued first, naming Scott Radman as a defendant in his Monongalia Circuit Court complaint. However, Radman fired back with a counterclaim alleging that he was the victim in the Marion County…

Mar 6, 2013 10:14 PM CST

Courthouse fray sends lawyers to hospital, jail

A lawyer was arrested after a Tuesday afternoon incident at a West Virginia courthouse in which he was accused of attacking another attorney. Stephen Sean Murphy was charged with malicious wounding and released on $10,000 bail after a fray at the Marion County courthouse around 2 p.m., according to WBOY…

Jan 23, 2013 8:13 PM CST

2 Plaintiffs Lawyers Lose Civil RICO Case re CSX Asbestos Claims; Federal Jury Awards $429K

Two Pittsburgh lawyers were found civilly liable by a federal jury in Wheeling, W.Va., along with a doctor they hired to screen asbestos cases, for helping railroad employees pursue fraudulent claims against CSX Transportation. Lawyers Robert N. Peirce Jr. and Louis A. Raimond violated the federal Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt…

Jan 3, 2013 3:55 PM CST

Judge in Video Tirade Admits Some Anger Issues; Recommended Sanction Would Keep Him on Bench

A West Virginia judge who made headlines because of a videotaped tirade apologized and admitted some anger management issues before a judicial hearing board on Tuesday. Judge William Watkins III has admitted allegations in a misconduct complaint and agreed to recommended discipline that would allow him to remain on the…

Nov 30, 2012 12:15 PM CST

W. Va. Lawyer Takes Plea in Federal Mail Fraud Case re $159K in Claimed False PD Billing Vouchers

A West Virginia private practitioner accused of defrauding the state’s public defender agency of $159,000 by billing for hours she did not work has pleaded guilty to a federal charge of mail fraud. Lisa A. Weese, 43, remains free on bond pending sentencing after her Tuesday plea in U.S. District…

Nov 7, 2012 6:34 PM CST

Judge Calls Former Law Firm Employee’s Apology for Stealing $400K ‘Shallow,’ Gives Her 2 to 20 Years

Teri Kay Workman was sentenced Tuesday to six consecutive one- to 10-year prison terms for embezzling nearly $400,000 from a West Virginia law firm for which she formerly worked as a business manager for seven years. However, Kanawha Circuit Judge Duke Bloom suspended four of the six sentences, after saying…

Sep 25, 2012 8:45 PM CDT