For more information on the potential Supreme Court impeachments, see this explainer.
The House Judiciary Committee continued its meetings Friday on the possible impeachment of one or more West Virginia Supreme Court justices. The second day of testimony focused heavily on suspended Justice Allen Loughry and his private use of state resources. The justices also delivered a letter to the committee critizing the impeachment proceedings.
Testimony kicked off in the morning with Scott Harvey, who worked for the Supreme Court’s IT department. Harvey told members he felt pressured at times to install equipment at Justice Loughry’s home -- where the justice had multiple state-owned computers.
According to a statement of charges from the Judicial Investigations Commission, at least one computer was used extensively for private use, including for storage of family photographs and video games.
In the afternoon, committee members continued discussions of Loughry’s possession of a historic Cass Gilbert desk. They heard testimony from Fletcher Adkins, a former assistant to the court’s former administrator.
In a letter to Chairman John Shott dated Friday, interim director of the state Supreme Court Barbara Allen challenged the scope of the committee’s requests for evidence and called it a “fishing expedition.”
Allen said the Supreme Court has been cooperative during the various investigations of the justices, but she argued the resolution to investigate possible impeachments infringes upon the separation of powers between government branches.
Delegates on the committee will resume meetings Thursday.
