The impeachment of the Supreme Court of Appeals of West Virginia occurred on August 13, 2018, when the
West Virginia
West Virginia is a state in the Appalachian, Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States.The Census Bureau and the Association of American Geographers classify West Virginia as part of the Southern United States while the Bur ...
House of Delegates voted to
impeach
Impeachment is the process by which a legislative body or other legally constituted tribunal initiates charges against a public official for misconduct. It may be understood as a unique process involving both political and legal elements.
In E ...
all five justices of the
Supreme Court of Appeals of West Virginia for charges relating to corruption, overspending, and lack of oversight. Despite being threatened in other
states at other times, this is the only time in
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
history that the entire bench of the highest court of a state has been impeached.
Of the five justices who were investigated:
* Justice
Menis Ketchum
Menis E. Ketchum II (born January 31, 1943, in Wayne County, West Virginia) is an American politician and jurist who served as a justice of the Supreme Court of Appeals of West Virginia. He was elected as a Democrat to a twelve-year term on the C ...
resigned before impeachment, pled guilty in federal court to one count of wire fraud, and had his license to practice law annulled and was sentenced to three years probation and fined.
* Chief Justice
Allen Loughry
Allen Hayes Loughry, II (born August 9, 1970) is a former justice on the Supreme Court of Appeals of West Virginia.
Loughry was arrested by the FBI in 2018 after being indicted by a grand jury. In October 2018, he was convicted on 11 federal offe ...
was removed as chief justice, suspended from the court, impeached on seven charges, convicted of 11 charges, resigned before being tried for removal from office and sentenced to 24 months in prison.
* Justice
Robin Davis was impeached on three charges, retired on August 14 — retroactively effective August 13 — and was not tried in the Senate due to an injunction from the temporarily reconstituted Supreme Court.
* Justice
Beth Walker was impeached on two charges, voted to not be removed 32-1-1 on October 2, and remained on the court.
* Justice
Margaret Workman
Margaret Lee Workman (born May 22, 1947) is an American lawyer and a former justice of the Supreme Court of Appeals of West Virginia. Her 1988 election to the Supreme Court made her the first woman elected to statewide office in West Virginia and ...
was impeached on two charges, not tried in the Senate due to an injunction from the Supreme Court, and remained on the court.
In the end, only Justices Walker and Workman remained in their positions, while Justices Loughry and Ketchum resigned and were federally tried, and Justice Davis retired.
Justices in 2018
Background
In late 2017,
WCHS-TV and other media outlets began reporting on spending by the
Supreme Court of Appeals of West Virginia. Eventually, an investigation by the office of the
United States Attorney
United States attorneys are officials of the U.S. Department of Justice who serve as the chief federal law enforcement officers in each of the 94 U.S. federal judicial districts. Each U.S. attorney serves as the United States' chief federal c ...
for the
Southern District of West Virginia
The United States District Court for the Southern District of West Virginia (in case citations, S.D. W. Va.) is a federal court in the Fourth Circuit (except for patent claims and claims against the U.S. government under the Tucker Act, which are ...
was launched, and the court was audited by the state's legislative auditor.
Investigation
The legislative auditor found multiple irregularities in the court's practices including undocumented and commuting use of court-owned vehicles and the improper purchase of gift cards. Significant public attention was centered on spending for expensive office renovations, including a $32,000 couch for Justice
Allen Loughry
Allen Hayes Loughry, II (born August 9, 1970) is a former justice on the Supreme Court of Appeals of West Virginia.
Loughry was arrested by the FBI in 2018 after being indicted by a grand jury. In October 2018, he was convicted on 11 federal offe ...
, and Loughry's use of an original
Cass Gilbert-designed desk from the State Capitol at his home. Justice
Menis Ketchum
Menis E. Ketchum II (born January 31, 1943, in Wayne County, West Virginia) is an American politician and jurist who served as a justice of the Supreme Court of Appeals of West Virginia. He was elected as a Democrat to a twelve-year term on the C ...
was reported to have used a state vehicle to travel from his home in
Huntington to work, and for several vacation trips, without paying tax on the
fringe benefit
Employee benefits and (especially in British English) benefits in kind (also called fringe benefits, perquisites, or perks) include various types of non-wage compensation provided to employees in addition to their normal wages or salaries. Insta ...
. Justice Ketchum then had his income tax amended to pay the back tax and repaid the state over $1600 for the issue.
Early in 2018, the other four justices voted to remove Loughry from his position as chief justice when they became aware he had withheld the existence of a federal grand jury subpoena from them. On June 6, 2018, Loughry was charged with 32 violations of the state Code of Judicial Conduct. The Supreme Court, reconstituted with four circuit judges and a retired circuit judge appointed for that purpose, suspended Loughry without pay until further notice as a result of these charges.
On June 20, 2018 (
West Virginia Day
West Virginia Day is a state holiday in the US state of West Virginia. Celebrated annually on June 20, the day celebrates the state's 1863 admission to the Union as a result of the secession of several northwestern counties of Virginia during the ...
),
Michael B. Stuart, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of West Virginia, announced a 22 count
indictment
An indictment ( ) is a formal accusation that a legal person, person has committed a crime. In jurisdictions that use the concept of felony, felonies, the most serious criminal offence is a felony; jurisdictions that do not use the felonies concep ...
against Loughry. He faces nearly 24 months in prison.
Impeaching the entire court
On June 26, 2018, the
West Virginia House of Delegates assembled in special session to consider Loughry's or any other justice's
impeachment
Impeachment is the process by which a legislative body or other legally constituted tribunal initiates charges against a public official for misconduct. It may be understood as a unique process involving both political and legal elements.
In ...
. The matter was referred to the House Judiciary Committee. In the course of its investigation, additional issues were discovered relative to splitting the pay of "senior status judges", who are retired judges filling in certain circumstances and who can make no more than 25% of an active judges' salary, between IRS
Form W-2 and
Form 1099
Form 1099 is one of several IRS tax forms (see the variants section) used in the United States to prepare and file an ''information return'' to report various types of income other than wages, salaries, and tips (for which Form W-2 is used inste ...
in order to circumvent that rule; and of the court purchasing "working lunches" at taxpayer expense on a regular basis.
On July 11, 2018, Justice Ketchum resigned from the court. On July 31, 2018, he entered a guilty plea in the
in Charleston to one count of
wire fraud
Mail fraud and wire fraud are terms used in the United States to describe the use of a physical or electronic mail system to fraud, defraud another, and are Federal crime in the United States, federal crimes there. Jurisdiction is claimed by the ...
. Because of his guilty plea to a felony, the Supreme Court of Appeals
annulled Ketchum's license to practice law in the state of West Virginia on October 4, 2018.
On August 7, 2018, the House Judiciary Committee recommended that all four remaining justices be impeached. Loughry for lack of oversight, improper removal of the desk to his home, improper use of a government computer, improper use of state owned cars for personal travel, overspending on his office decorations, the overpaying of "senior status judges" and lying to the Legislature; Chief Justice
Margaret Workman
Margaret Lee Workman (born May 22, 1947) is an American lawyer and a former justice of the Supreme Court of Appeals of West Virginia. Her 1988 election to the Supreme Court made her the first woman elected to statewide office in West Virginia and ...
and Justice
Robin Davis for overpaying of "senior status judges", lack of oversight, and overspending; and Justice
Beth Walker for lack of oversight and overspending.
On August 13, 2018, the full House of Delegates impeached the four remaining members of the court. On August 14, 2018, Davis retired from the court, effective August 13, 2018.
The justices, other than Justice Walker who had already been tried, awaited trial on the impeachment in the
West Virginia Senate
The West Virginia Senate is the upper house of the West Virginia Legislature.
There are seventeen senatorial districts. Each district has two senators who serve staggered four-year terms. Although the Democratic Party held a supermajority in the ...
.
Trials
The West Virginia Senate met on Monday, August 20, 2018 to receive the articles of impeachment from the House of Delegates and approve the rules governing the impeachment trials. In addition, the Senate confirmed that
Cabell County
Cabell County is located in the U.S. state of West Virginia. As of the 2020 census, the population was 94,350, making it West Virginia's fourth most-populous county. Its county seat is Huntington. The county was organized in 1809 and named for ...
Circuit Judge Paul Farrell, who had been temporarily designated by the Supreme Court to fill in for Loughry, was to preside over all of the trials. The Senate also voted to try each of the justices separately with Farrell determining the order.
Pretrial hearing
On September 11, 2018, the West Virginia Senate debated and voted on a number of preliminary issues for the four trials. Several motions had to do with Judge Davis, who had already retired. It was voted to try her anyway by votes of 19-15 on several resolutions. Then the Senate "dissolved" into a court of impeachment and set trial dates and other housekeeping matters. A resolution substituting censure for a full trials for Workman and Walker was ruled out of order.
Trial of Justice Walker
Justice Walker's impeachment trial began on October 1. The trial concluded on October 2 with the Senate voting 32-1 to acquit her, with only Senator
Stephen Baldwin of
Greenbrier County voting for conviction and Senator
Ryan Weld
Ryan William Weld (born May 19, 1980) is a Republican member of the West Virginia Senate for the 1st district. He previously served in the West Virginia House of Delegates. He was appointed whip in 2017.
Biography
Weld was born in Wellsburg, We ...
of
Brooke County
Brooke County is a county in the Northern Panhandle of the U.S. state of West Virginia. As of the 2020 census, the population was 22,559. Its county seat is Wellsburg. The county was created in 1797 from part of Ohio County and named in hono ...
absent. The Senate followed by agreeing, by voice vote, to publicly "reprimand and censure" Justice Walker for her actions in the scandal.
Trial of Justice Workman
Justice Workman's impeachment trial was scheduled to begin on October 15. However, on October 11, the Supreme Court of Appeals, temporarily reconstituted with five circuit court judges, issued an injunction blocking the impeachment trial, stating that the articles of impeachment presented by the House of Delegates against Workman violated the
separation of powers doctrine and, therefore, the Senate has no jurisdiction to try Workman on the impeachment. In addition, Judge Farrell stated that he would not preside over Justice Workman's trial while the injunction was in place. The Senate met on October 15 and adjourned with no final decision on how to proceed being made. Senate President
Mitch Carmichael announced after the session had adjourned that the Senate would ask the Supreme Court of Appeals to reconsider their decision, however, in light of Loughry's resignation, further impeachment efforts against Workman are doubtful.
Trial of former Justice Davis
Former Justice Davis' trial was scheduled to begin on October 29. However, the reconstituted Supreme Court of Appeals ruled on October 25 that the injunction blocking Justice Workman's trial also retroactively applied to Justice Davis' and Justice Loughry's trials. In light of the court's decision and Loughry's resignation, further impeachment efforts against Davis are doubtful.
Trials of Justice Loughry
Impeachment
The impeachment trial for Justice Loughry was set for November 12. However, the reconstituted Supreme Court of Appeals ruled on October 25 that the injunction blocking Justice Workman's trial also retroactively applied to Justice Davis' and Justice Loughry's trial.
Delegate
Andrew Byrd of
Kanawha County
Kanawha County ( ) is a County (United States), county in the U.S. state of West Virginia. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 180,745, making it West Virginia's most populous county. The county seat is Charlest ...
, who is serving as one of the impeachment managers, is asking Gov. Jim Justice to call the House of Delegates into special session on November 11-13 to draft new impeachment articles against Loughry based solely on his federal criminal convictions (see below).
Federal criminal trial
Justice Loughry’s federal criminal trial began on October 2. This trial concluded on October 12 with Loughry being convicted of seven counts of
wire fraud
Mail fraud and wire fraud are terms used in the United States to describe the use of a physical or electronic mail system to fraud, defraud another, and are Federal crime in the United States, federal crimes there. Jurisdiction is claimed by the ...
, one count of
mail fraud, one count of
witness tampering and two counts of
lying to the FBI. The jury found Loughry not guilty on nine counts of wire fraud and two counts of mail fraud while they
deadlocked on one count of wire fraud. Loughry, who remained on the court until resigning on November 12, 2018, was sentenced to 24 months in federal prison on February 13, 2019. He was released from
FCI Williamsburg on December 19, 2020.
Aftermath
Justice Ketchum's seat and Justice Davis' seat were ultimately filled in separate
special elections which were held alongside the
2018 general election on November 6, 2018. On August 25, 2018,
Governor Jim Justice
James Conley Justice II (born April 27, 1951) is an American businessman and politician who has served as the 36th governor of West Virginia since 2017. Justice had a net worth of $1.2 billion in September 2018, making him the wealthiest person ...
appointed
Tim Armstead
Timothy Paul Armstead (born February 26, 1965) is a Republican politician and jurist from West Virginia, currently serving as an associate justice of the Supreme Court of Appeals of West Virginia. He formerly represented 40th District (Kanawha Cou ...
, former
Speaker of the House of Delegates and
Evan Jenkins,
U.S. Representative
The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they c ...
for , to the two vacant seats until the special elections. Armstead took Ketchum's seat while Jenkins took Davis' seat with both having already filed to run in the November special elections. Armstead and Jenkins were required to observe a mandatory twenty day waiting period in which the members of the public can file official objections to the appointments prior to taking their seats. This waiting period ended on September 19, 2018. Armsted took the oath of office and assumed his seat on September 25, 2018 while Jenkins resigned from the House of Representatives on September 30, 2018 and took his seat on the court on October 1, 2018.
In accordance with Chapter 3, Section 10 of the West Virginia Code, any further vacancies were filled by interim justices appointed by Governor Justice. Barring any changes by the
Legislature, these interim justices served until the
primary election in May 2020, when a special election was held. This became the case with Loughry's resignation, as on December 12, 2018, Justice appointed
John A. Hutchison
John A. Hutchison (born 1950) is an American lawyer serving as a justice of the Supreme Court of Appeals of West Virginia. He joined the court in 2018 and served as chief justice in 2022.
Education
Hutchison received his Bachelor of Arts in his ...
, a lifelong friend and circuit judge in
Raleigh County, to Loughry's vacated seat.
References
{{Reflist
Supreme Court of Appeals of West Virginia
*
2018 in West Virginia
August 2018 events in the United States