MetroNews This Morning
MetroNews This Morning 6-25-24
Today on MetroNews This Morning:
--A mother in Putnam County is charged in the death of her infant child
--The U.S. Attorney for northern W.Va. says elder fraud continues to be a growing problem in the state
--Governor Justice says he had nothing to do with the mural which seems to contain a rendering of Babydog
--In Sports: Champions crowned in college baseball and the NHL
- Duration:
- 15m
- Broadcast on:
- 25 Jun 2024
- Audio Format:
- mp3
This is Metro News this morning bringing you this morning's biggest news headlines from across the state. It is Tuesday, June 25, 2024. Good morning. I'm Chris Lawrence and we're ready to get you day started up today in West Virginia. The forecast heat rising again today on the mountain state. That's going to spin off some potentially strong thunderstorm activity for this this evening and overnight tonight. We'll get the full forecast for you in just a moment. Right now, let's get caught up on what's been happening overnight in West Virginia. At the Metro News anchor down to this morning is Carrie who to say good morning, Carrie. Good morning, Chris, a 16 day old baby girl is dead and her mother is in custody. Hurricane resident 33 year old Brooke Kessler is charged with death of a child by parent. After her little girl died Sunday when she was taken off life support at CMC Women in Children's Hospital. The baby was first brought there last Thursday and hospital officials wasted little time in calling state police. Troopers say the girl had bruises around her neck, a broken arm, six broken ribs and skull fractures. Troopers spoke to Kessler, her husband and a grandmother. Kessler says she may have squeezed her baby too hard while burping, but her husband and the grandmother both say she appeared to be suffering from postpartum depression. Her husband says at times he had to take the baby away to let his wife cool off. Kessler is now awaiting a preliminary hearing. I'm Jeff Jenkins, WV, MetroNews.com. A Cabell County woman is in jail after being charged with killing her brother. Sheriff Chuck Circle says it happened during a family dispute early Monday morning in collodin. Lady call it in and say that she had shot her brother. We got there to say and was met Sierra Harmon and her brother will succumb to his gunshot. William Harmon suffered a gunshot wound to the head. 25 year old Sierra Harmon is charged with first degree murder and is currently being held in the western regional jail without bail. State police are investigating after the body of a woman was found in Lincoln County. The body was located off Taunton Way off of Francis Creek Road in the hearts community just before 9 o'clock Monday night. The woman's identity has not been released. Troopers say they've arrested an escaped inmate from Kentucky in Cabell County. 37 year old Thomas Price was taken into custody along US Route 60 at a shopping complex in Barbersville Monday night. He was arraigned shortly after that at the Cabell County courthouse on a fugitive from Justice warrant. Price was taken to the western regional jail before being extradited back to Kentucky. The Harpers Ferry bridge that carries CSX trains between West Virginia and Maryland is damaged after catching fire. Officials say the bridge, which is located in Sandy Hook, Maryland, across the Potomac River from Harpers Ferry caught fire at around 330 Monday afternoon. The fire was brought under control two hours later. No one was hurt. There's an image on one of the new historical murals in the state capital Rotunda and it looks a lot like baby dog. Governor Jim Justice on Monday denied claims that that image was in fact his dog. To think that we just decided we're going to put baby dog in the thing. I mean that's ridiculous. But we should just be happy about the fact that we've got murals there that surely need to be there. And we should be happy about the fact that that little bulldog really has brought a lot of happiness and a lot of big smiles to all of. The bulldog can be seen on and all with Seneca rocks in the background and your images of an artist, a couple dancing and some musicians. You can view a photo at wvmetronews.com. The governor is praising to WVU astrophysicists. Professors Maura McLaughlin and Duncan Lora Moore were co-recipients of the Shaw Prize last year for their work in the discovery of fast radio bursts. And on Monday Governor Justice recognized them with the Distinguished West Virginia Award. McLaughlin says this is a special honor. I think that's going to be positive for my research career as far as opportunities to be a leader in the field. Hopefully make an impact on science policy. Read more at wvmetronews.com. Nicholas County Schools is moving forward with the construction of new schools following the June 2016 flood. The state school building has already approved a $3.5 million funding request for the Glade Creek project during a special meeting Monday. SBA Executive Director Andy Neptune says it was important to cover the cost that FEMA could not. My recommendation to the authority was that we go ahead and fund that additional cost as a result of the change of the scope of work that occurred at the Glade Creek project site. The SBA on Monday also approved funding be returned to the SBA from Upsher County Schools regarding the Tenerton Elementary School renovation project as the school district remains under the control of the State Department of Education. The State Department of Education is holding the Invest meetings with teachers this weekend, Charleston and Morgantown. It's a chance for educators to learn new initiatives on how to teach a variety of subjects. 2024 West Virginia Teacher of the Year Sharon Cole is taking part. I sat and chatted with another teacher. We were given time to gather resources and we were helping each other. And I just looked at her and I said and I'll tell me something really interesting you do in your classroom and she did. Cole says that conversation makes the whole conference worth it. Stargazing cabins at Cooper's Rock State Forest in Preston County are expected to be open by this August. State Tourism Secretary Chelsea Ruby says these outdoor assets have increased in popularity over the years. We looked at the research. We knew that people like unique lodging and we really dug in to find our strengths in West Virginia and landed with these amazing designs here. The improvements valued at more than $10 million include 25 new campsites, a new bathhouse and five stargazing cabins decked out with skylights and telescopes. Thank you, Kerry. Coming up in a moment in our background, we'll hear from U.S. Attorney Bill Eilenfeld of the Northern District of West Virginia as elder fraud cases continue to climb and mount in West Virginia. We'll tell you about that. And Kyle Wigs is at the Sports Desk as the Tennessee Volunteers are atop College Baseball this morning. That story and more still ahead. Hey everybody, it's Tony Kariti. And I'm Greg Hunter. And I'm Brad Hal. And we invite you to join us Sunday through Fridays right here on the Metro News Radio Network. It's the City Net Statewide Sports Line. We talk West Virginia University football, basketball, baseball. You name it. If it's got anything to do with the Golden Blue, we're on it. And don't forget the text line available every night. So we invite you to join us, the Senator, Coach Hunter and me, Tony Kariti. It's the City Net Statewide Sports Line on Metro News. Coming up, Kyle Wigs will have sports for us right now in our background. The U.S. Attorney for Northern West Virginia, Bill Eilenfeld says his office continues to investigate and prosecute elder fraud cases. And he says, unfortunately, those types of cases are not decreasing. We hear more from Eilenfeld in our background. It happens a lot, unfortunately. Elder financial exploitation is trending upward in West Virginia from all the reports that come across my desk and across the country. Last year in America, those 60 in order lost $3 billion to scammers. And there was an additional $27 billion in suspicious activity related to elder fraud. So it is happening more and more often. The consequences are obviously the loss of money, but it's more than that. It's traumatic for people who are victims of this, and it can impact their physical health and their mental health. And as you said, we are prosecuting these cases, and I'm also trying to raise awareness about it so that fewer people become victims. One is to resist the pressure to act quickly. So many times in these situations, the criminals express a sense of urgency and say that they need the money today. And the most important thing most people can do in those situations is to press the pause button, take a deep breath, call someone you trust before you send the money. And that's another thing. Never send money to someone you've only met online. We have so many people get pulled into this where they meet someone online and they think that they trust that person. But you should never send money to someone that you've only met online and never met in person. If you're going to have in-home care, or your loved one is going to have people coming into the home to take care of them, which happens for a lot of us. Make sure you secure the valuables, make sure that you hide away bank statements and investment statements. Make sure that people who are coming into the home to help your loved one don't have access to that kind of financial information and personally identifiable information. Elon fell to guess Monday on Metro News Talkline. Now to the sports desk, Kyle Wigs is in and Kyle, the Tennessee Volunteers are the champions of college baseball for 2024. Another wild game on Monday night after Tennessee, they'd rallied after losing game. One of the best of three final to Texas A&M, Tennessee wins game two, and then in the third and deciding game on Monday night. Tennessee jumped out to a six to one lead, Texas A&M rallied in the eighth, they rallied with runs in the ninth, but Tennessee holds them off to volunteers win the college world series for the first time in school history. Tennessee beats Texas A&M six to five to win college baseball's national championship. We also had a Stanley Cup Championship decided on Monday as Florida and Edmonton, they were tied at one one in the second period. Now to the right point for CC, down along the board things right side, all total cuts out front in the same Boronski and then it's pushed away out of harm's way by Koolikov, and the Panthers break it out quickly. Here's Reinhardt at the right wing side, Reinhardt to the right circle. And he scores, Sam Reinhardt gives the Panthers a two one lead, here in game seven, 4-4-9 to play, here in the middle frame, and Sam Reinhardt out of the right circle gives the Panthers the lead. So Edmonton nearly scores at one end, the Panthers counter and get the go ahead goal at the other end, it was two to one after that Sam Reinhardt goal in the second period. Edmonton with a wild flurry in the third, but the Panthers hold them off and the Florida Panthers beat Edmonton two to one to win the first Stanley Cup in franchise history. Major League Baseball Reds over the Pirates, 11-5 RBI double for L.A. Dayla Cruz, the Homer in the game, O'Neill Cruz also hit a bomb for the Pirates, deep to center field in the loss, the Reds beat Pittsburgh, 11-5. Thank you, Kyle, week afternoons from 3-6, check out Hotline with Dave Weekly and Koop, it's an irreverent discussion that starts with sports, but then branches off into a myriad of topics like food, tech, music, pop culture, entertainment, who knows what else. Check them out on the radio via Metro News or streaming live at wvmetronews.com or afterward you can download their podcast from any podcast provider. Metro News Hotline is the name of the show. Now with today's commentary, the voice of Metro News, Hoppy Kirchival. Chris Babydog is now permanently enshrined in West Virginia's architecture and history. The image of Governor Jim Justices' beloved English Bulldog appears surprisingly in one of the murals recently unveiled in the upper rotunda of the West Virginia State Capitol Building. Babydog is seated among individuals depicting dance, music and art with Seneca Rocks in the background. It appears to have been a decision by State Department of Arts, Culture and History Secretary Randall Reed Smith to include the dog's image in one of the panels. Governor Justice told a reporter Monday he was not aware of this until he saw the mural for the first time last week. And I'm still trying to sort out what to make of this. From a purist standpoint, Babydog doesn't really belong there, does she? Reed Smith said during last week's dedication of the murals that the intention of Capitol Building architect Cass Gilbert was for the murals to be historical and allegorical. Babydog's not really either. She's a beloved pet, but also a political prop that Justice has used successfully to enhance his own popularity. The State Capitol does not belong to Justice or any other politician. It is the people's house, and it will be there as long as there is a government. The temporary occupants of the building have an obligation to maintain its structural and aesthetic integrity for future generations. That includes keeping any changes in line with Gilbert's original design. Now, when I first saw the picture of the mural of Babydog in it, I cringed. No, it was not as bad as when Justice flashed the dog's rear end of the camera, and more specifically to Bette Midler, who had made a disparaging remark about the state, at the end of the 2022 state of the state address. But I still felt it was inappropriate. However, now when I look at the mural, and I've looked at it a lot, my first reaction is to laugh. Babydog seems like now she seems like she belongs there, perfectly comfortable with all that going on around her, much like her behavior when she's seated beside the governor at public events. And that's typical of the breed. The American Kennel Club describes English bulldogs as "kind but courageous, friendly but dignified." That loose skin on the head pushed in nose and hanging jowls make the animal look either like they're smiling or sad. Either way, we are inclined to anthropomorphize them. Babydog, like all good pets, makes us happy. According to the National Alliance on Mental Illness, studies showed that dogs can reduce stress, anxiety and depression, ease loneliness, encourage exercise, and improve your all-around health. Well, Babydog and Justice may not check that exercise box, but she clearly brings joy to those around her, and in West Virginia, we can always use a little more joy. I imagine future tours of our popular capital building where the guide tells the visitors about how the governor's dog became a beloved pet of the state, even a symbol of a massive vaccine effort during the pandemic. Remember, do it for Babydog? Now the guide will ask the tourists, "Can you find Babydog in one of the murals?" That'll be a memorable part of the tour. However, we must also try to imagine what Cass Gilbert would think. He was one of our country's great architects, and it is a deep source of pride that he built our capital. A profile of Gilbert in Architectural Digest describes him as "formal, stuffy, ambitious, loyal, conservative in the extreme, and more than a little prissy." Something tells me Mr. Gilbert would not approve, but then again, he never got to meet Babydog. Chris? Thank you, Bob, and hobbyist back at 10-06 this morning with his show, Metro News Talk Line. Your West Virginia weather forecast for the day, mostly clear skies, dry weather to start off, but others a chance for some shower and thunderstorm activity that will creep in this afternoon and evening, mostly in the western part of the state. A few storms could be severe, damaging winds, and hail our possibility. The above-normal temperatures are anticipated today, and tomorrow, shower and thunderstorm activity tomorrow, and tomorrow night as well as a cold front moves in. Some more seasonable temperatures returning on Thursday behind that front, mostly dry weather on Friday than another system may provide a chance for shower and thunderstorm activity this weekend. And now you are up to date, have yourself a great day, for Hoppy Kergevel, Kyle Whigs, and Carrie Huda Sec, I'm Chris Lawrence, and this is Metro News, the voice of West Virginia. 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