SUMMERSVILLE, W.Va. — Two Nicholas County commissioners will be the subject of a Petition for Removal for the second time in the past year.
Kenneth Culp, a Nicholas County business owner, filed the petition, which included 128 signatures, Tuesday morning in Nicholas County Circuit Court.
“The more serious allegations against the Commissioners are for financial malfeasance and neglect of duty,” Culp said.
The new petition seeks a three judge panel to hear the case for removal of Commissioners Ken Altizer and John Miller, requests their removal from office, requests Altizer and Miller reimburse the county for all earnings and benefits received since they were elected, and for any other relief the Court deems appropriate.
Culp announced his intentions to file the petition Tuesday morning during the public comment period of the Nicholas County Commission’s regularly scheduled meeting after listing allegations against the Commissioners and asking for the resignations of Ken Altizer and John Miller. Culp is joined by retired businessman George E. Mace as a fellow petitioner.
Culp and Mace are alleging that the Commissioners are guilty of financial malfeasance in handling the County’s budget, which has been reduced due to losses in coal severance dollars. The petitioners are also alleging that the Commissioners violated the U.S. Constitution in their handling of public comments at County Commission meetings.
“Over the past five years, Nicholas County has lost 4.8 million dollars,” Culp said. “They estimate they will lose another one million dollars this year, and they have already admitted that for 2017 they will have to cut another 1.2 million dollars in expenditures to balance in the budgets. In other words, Commissioners [Ken] Altizer and [John] Miller have bankrupted Nicholas County, and they need to be removed.”
Culp alleges that the Commissioners have misused the public comment portion of their past meetings to limit criticism.
“Basically, they got tired of people like me coming down and complaining about what they were doing, and so they tried to shut us up,” Culp said.
“The more problems I pointed out, the more they tried to shut me up,” he said. “Eventually they just set up a new procedure, which basically says I can not get on the Agenda if I want to talk about anything in the past because ‘they can’t do anything about that.'”
Commissioners Altizer, Miller, and Dr. Yancy Short, who is no longer serving on Commission after choosing not to run for re-election in 2014, were named in a previous Petition of Removal last year. A three judge panel heard that case in September and eventually ruled in favor of the Commissioners by dismissing the Petition in early January.
The previous petition responded to the controversy that came after the Nicholas County Commission hired a County Administrator, a position that exists in 39 other counties in the state, without a county-wide vote.
During the September hearing of that Petition, Culp, who was not part of the original Petition, attempted to join the Petitioners on the grounds that he had evidence of “systemic financial mismanagement.” Though the three judge panel ultimately denied Culp’s request, they noted in their ruling that the appropriate action would be for Culp to file a separate petition.
The full petition alleges that the two Commissioners are guilty of:
– Failing to adequately supervise the general management of the fiscal affairs and business of Nicholas County under West Virginia Code 7-1-5
– Are guilty of malfeasance in office, incompetence and neglect of duty under West Virginia Code 6-6-1
– Are guilty of appointing and/or retaining incompetent persons under West Virginia Code 6-6-1
– Are guilty of the willful waste of public funds under West Virginia Code 6-6-1
– Are guilty of financial malfeasance under West Virginia Code 6-6-7 (a) through ignorance and inattention
– Are guilty of failing to segregate County funds in separate bank accounts as required by legal agreements and/or the law
– Are guilty of violating the United States Constitution, Article I of the Bill of Rights by limiting the public’s right “to petition the Government for a redress of grievances”
– And have refused to take responsibility for their actions
Commissioners Altizer and Miller chose not to respond or comment on Mr. Culp’s petition or it’s content.