CHARLESTON, W.Va. — Kanawha County Commission President Ben Salango and his family are on the front lines of trying to change the penalty for those convicted of first-degree murder in West Virginia.
In the Mountain State, a man or woman who is convicted of first-degree murder with mercy becomes eligible for parole in 15 years. That is the lightest minimum prison sentence for a person convicted of first-degree murder in the nation.
Salango, who appeared on MetroNews “Talkline” Tuesday, says West Virginia needs to bump the minimum sentence up to 35 years to be more aligned with other states, even more liberal states like New York and California.
“Why not bring West Virginia code in line with every other state, including the liberal leaning states, to make sure that the victim’s families are protected?” Salango asked. “Why have them start parole hearings at 15 years and then again at 18 years and 21 years, if in fact, they’re going to be denied over and over?”
The main reason for the commissioner’s passionate fight for change is simple. Salango’s wife, Kanawha County Circuit Judge Tera Salango, was just 16 years old when her brother was stabbed and murdered at the age of 25.
“This is not political, it’s personal. This is something that my wife and I have been dealing with for many years,” Salango said.
Salango says the process is painful and traumatizing for victims’ families, and he believes it shouldn’t have started this soon.
“For the last 20 years, we have had to attend parole hearings. Every one to three years, there’s a parole hearing, and time and time again, it victimizes the families of the victims over and over,” Salango said.
Salango’s family has been to eight different parole hearings over the last two decades. Each time to this point, the parole board has denied the request, but Salango says the hearings bring out all the emotions and frustrations again and again.
“Each time it is heart-wrenching,” Salango said. “It starts a month before the hearing. The family is incredibly upset thinking, “The man that was convicted of first-degree murder that was given with mercy — is this going to be the time he gets out?”
“It absolutely rips the band-aid and the scab off every single time it comes up. To sit there and listen to the man who murdered your loved one try to explain and excuse and come up with different reasons why he should get out, knowing that this Thanksgiving and Christman, you’re not going to see your loved one, but yet, he gets to go home to his family. It’s not fair,” he said.
According to Salango, Kanawha County will be doing its part to ensure changes are made.
“This is going to be a big part of Kanawha County’s legislative agenda this year,” Salango said. “We’ve got to make sure that we are protecting the public and protecting crime victims and their families.”