Latest West Virginia Headlines

All the headlines from our West Virginia Topic Page, ordered by recency.

New West Virginia Laws to Restrict Teen Drivers

Jun 26 2009 // Beginning drivers in West Virginia will soon face new restrictions ranging from when they can be out to when they can be pulled over.Although the new rules won’t go into effect until July 10, Division of Motor...

Nationwide Golf Tour Cuts West Virginia Winnings as Sponsors Lag

Jun 26 2009 // One of the Nationwide Tour’s top events slashed its purse nearly in half because of a lack of sponsorships.This week’s Players Cup at Pete Dye Golf Course in West Virginia will award $600,000 in prize money,...

West Virginia Workers’ Compensation Insurer Approved in Kentucky

Jun 25 2009 // West Virginia’s BrickStreet Mutual Insurance Co. said it received word this week that it has been approved to write workers’ compensation insurance in Kentucky.The expansion into Kentucky begins a “new...

Gov. Manchin Names Commission to Study West Virginia Judiciary

Jun 18 2009 // Retired U.S. Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’Connor will serve as honorary chair of a new study of West Virginia’s judiciary commissioned by Gov. Joe Manchin, the governor announced.Manchin named...

Retired West Virginia Judge to Replace Benjamin in Massey Retrial

Jun 16 2009 // A retired Putnam County judge has been picked to replace state Supreme Court Chief Justice Brent Benjamin on a case involving Massey Energy.Acting chief justice Robin Davis appointed James Holliday on Thursday to serve on...

Justice Benjamins

Jun 15 2009 // Eleven states also elect insurance commissioners and given that insurance regulators are in many ways judges, the same potential conflicts are in play.An elected West Virginia judge should have taken himself out a case...

How Might Supreme Court Recusal Ruling Affect West Virginia Judiciary?

Jun 10 2009 // This week’s U.S. Supreme Court ruling that faults state Justice Brent Benjamin for not recusing himself from a case involving a generous campaign supporter may aid a pending review of West Virginia’s court...

Supreme Court Favors Elected Judge Recusal In West Virginia Massey Case

Jun 9 2009 // The Supreme Court ruled Monday that a West Virginia judge should have disqualified himself from an appeal of a $50 million jury verdict against Massey Energy Co. because the coal mining company’s CEO had been a major...

West Virginia to Review Accidents Involving State Vehicles

May 29 2009 // West Virginia officials plan to enforce a long-ignored regulation requiring reviews of accidents involving state vehicles in response to a legislative audit that criticized one agency.The audit says 19 Alcohol Beverage...

West Virginia Physician Convicted of Insurance Fraud Seeks Retrial

May 29 2009 // A Marlinton, West Virginia, physician convicted on 29 counts of health care fraud for billing insurers for services he never performed is seeking a new trial.U.S. District Judge Irene Keeley has set a July 2 hearing for...

West Virginia Fines Trucking Firm for Fatal Mining Accident

May 21 2009 // The state of West Virginia has fined a trucking company $50,000 for violations investigators say contributed to a fatal coal mining accident in February, a spokeswoman for the Office of Miners’ Health, Safety and...

Medical Device Maker to Settle Suits Against West Virginia Doctor

May 15 2009 // A medical device maker has told shareholders it is settling out of lawsuits against Dr. John King, the one-time West Virginia osteopath at the center of scores of malpractice claims.Biomet Inc. has reached agreements with...

Emergency Declared in West Virginia Due to Severe Flooding

May 11 2009 // Heavy rains caused flash-flooding this past weekend in southern West Virginia, closing many highways, forcing residents from their homes and prompting Gov. Joe Manchin to declare a state of emergency.Manchin’s...

West Virginia’s City National Bank Acquires 2 Insurance Agencies

May 5 2009 // Charleston, West Virginia-based City National Bank and its insurance division, CityInsurance Professionals, reported they have acquired two local insurance agencies: the Patton Insurance Agency in Nitro and the Dickens...

Safety Lapses Found in West Virginia Bayer Chemical Plant Explosion

Apr 24 2009 // A large explosion and fire that took the lives of two workers at the Bayer CropScience plant in West Virginia last August was caused by a thermal runaway reaction during the production of an insecticide. The event likely...

West Virginia’s Expanding Brickstreet Mutual Outsources Public Relations

Apr 20 2009 // West Virginia workers’ compensation carrier BrickStreet Mutual Insurance Co. says it’s getting rid of its in-house public relations and communications office.BrickStreet president and chief executive Greg...

Massey Energy Fined $2.5 Million for Fatal West Virginia Mine Fire

Apr 17 2009 // A Massey Energy subsidiary was fined $2.5 million fine this week after a federal judge accepted the company’s guilty plea to 10 criminal charges for a fire that killed two West Virginia coal miners.U.S. District...

DuPont: West Virginia Court Should Overturn Smelter Case

Apr 10 2009 // Chemical maker DuPont urged the West Virginia Supreme Court to fix what it called mistakes that led to a nearly $400 million verdict against the company by overturning the case.The court can order a new trial or even...

West Virginia House Targets Drivers’ Cell Phone Use

Mar 31 2009 // If you’re on the phone while driving and have your hands on your cell instead of the wheel, that could mean a misdemeanor charge in West Virginia.Legislation passed 80-18 by the House to the Senate aims to limit...

Business Moves

Mar 23 2009 // Auto Club Insurance, MEEMICAuto Club Insurance Association, a Dearborn, Michigan-based insurer, reported it has agreed to acquire MEEMIC Insurance Co. and its insurance agency affiliate, MEEMIC Insurance Services Corp....