CHARLESTON, W.Va. — A three-judge panel on Wednesday ordered that two county commissioners in West Virginia’s Eastern Panhandle be removed from office more than a month after they were arrested for purposefully violating their duties by skipping public meetings.
Circuit Court Judges Joseph K. Reeder of Putnam County, Jason A. Wharton of Wirt and Wood Counties and Perri Jo DeChristopher of Monongalia County wrote in a written decision that Jefferson County Commissioners Jennifer Krouse and Tricia Jackson “engaged in a pattern of conduct which amounted to the willful, deliberate and willful refusal to perform their duties.”
Krouse and Jackson — who is also a Republican candidate for state auditor — were arrested in March and arraigned in Jefferson County Magistrate Court on 42 charges ranging from failure to discharge official duties to conspiracy to commit a crime against the state to commit. The petition to remove the two women from office was filed by the Jefferson County Prosecutor’s Office in November, and the three-judge panel heard the case in late March.
Neither Krouse nor Jackson responded to emails from The Associated Press seeking comment.
In a public Facebook post, Jackson said she is working with an attorney to appeal the decision and is still running for state auditor.
“An election has been overturned and the will of the people has been subverted,” Jackson wrote. “I have no intention of surrendering and intend to challenge this unjust decision every step of the way.”
The case stems from seven missed rallies in late 2023 that state police alleged in court documents related to the criminal case that Krouse and Jackson skipped to protest candidates selected to replace a retiring commissioner. According to a criminal complaint, they believed the candidates were not “true conservatives.”
The complaint alleged that Krouse and Jackson’s absences between September 21 and November 16, 2023 prevented the commission from conducting regular business, preventing it from filling 911 post positions, approving a $150,000 grant for victim advocates at the District Attorney’s Office and a $50,000 grant for the renovation of the courthouse.
The county lost out on the courthouse improvement grant because the commission must approve expenses above $5,000.
Both Jackson and Krouse continued to receive benefits and paychecks despite the missed meetings. They began returning after an order from the Jefferson County Circuit Court.
Krouse took office in January 2023 and Jackson in 2021.