BECKLEY, W.V. (LOOTPRESS) – Tuesday evening, West Virginia Attorney General Patrick Morrisey met with law enforcement officers from Fayette and Raleigh counties at The Law Offices of Brandon S. Steele to discuss the flux of fentanyl coming into the region.
Entities represented at the meeting included the Fayetteville Police Department, the West Virginia State Police, the Raleigh County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office, the Raleigh County Sheriff’s Department, the Beckley Police Department, the Raleigh County Drug and Violent Crime Task Force and the Mount Hope Police Department. Representatives from the City of Beckley, local law offices and drug testing centers were also present.
Morrisey noted that his office scheduled the roundtable discussion to talk about the impending fentanyl issue but to also give an update on the state’s current litigation against immigration policies recently introduced by the Biden Administration.
Morrisey stated that, while there is a lot his office is working on in terms of the state’s fentanyl issue, it is extremely beneficial to host discussions like the one held Tuesday because it allows him to see how departments are tackling the drug issue on the ground.
During the meeting, officials had the opportunity to share their concerns about the drugs coming into the area and address how the Attorney General’s Office can further support their efforts in Charleston.
Every department stated that they were dealing with more fentanyl or drug-related cases than they could handle. They all also said that they are understaffed.
Josh Thompson, Assistant Prosecuting Attorney for Raleigh County, shared that, last year, Raleigh County had the most indictments of any county in the state, while having 12 fewer prosecutors than Kanawha County.
In reference to drug use in Raleigh County, Thompson said that 132 people were indicted in the Grand Jury in May. 46 of these cases were drug-related.
“Fentanyl is in everything,” Thomspon stated, adding that it isn’t safe to do any drug in Raleigh County. According to Thompson, the county has recently seen an influx of fentanyl-laced marijuana and methamphetamine.
He believes the drugs are getting into the county from Columbus, Ohio; Detroit, Michigan; Akron, Ohio, Charlotte, North Carolina; and various cities in Texas.
Sergeant Robert Richards with the West Virginia State Police shared that, so far this year, the Task Force has worked 92 cases, 72 of which were heroin and fentanyl and 24 were methamphetamine and crystal meth. The force has seized 730 grams of various drugs, 10 percent of which was fentanyl.
“From a law enforcement perspective, it’s overwhelming,” Raleigh County Chief Deputy Jim Canaday said, addressing Morrisey.
“The support we need to see to keep us going from the top down, I think, is one of the most important things you can take back with you, and that is that we need to know that this is supported.”
Following the discussion, Lootpress was able to speak with Attorney General Morrisey, who stated that the meeting was extremely effective as “connecting is critical.”
“This was a great event. I had a chance to talk to local law enforcement and listen to what’s on their mind,” he said. “Getting into the community and listening to law enforcement is particularly important because they are on the front lines.”
Morrisey continued, explaining that the discussion dovetails nicely into the new immigration initiative, which he believes will leave the United States’ border porous to drugs and drug-related crimes.
Last week, the Biden Administration officially ended former President Trump’s “Remain in Mexico” Policy. This policy was implemented in 2019 and required immigrants seeking asylum to stay in Mexico while awaiting immigration court proceedings.
Morrisey says the United States- even West Virginia- will be seeing an increase of drugs and Mexican cartels due to the removal of this policy.
Because of this, West Virginia is working with other states to engage in litigation against the initiative and see that the policy change doesn’t stand.
Morrisey said the comments made Tuesday night reaffirmed what his office is fighting.
“Immigration does impact West Virginia and the illicit drug trade,” he said. “This stuff cuts across county lines; it cuts across state lines, so it’s important that we all work together. We will continue to collaborate locally and get information…”
The Attorney General’s Office will be checking back in with local officials in Fayette and Raleigh County to continue to monitor the drug crisis.