Criminal justice reform advocates push support proposals this session By
February 15, 2021 - 12:04 pm
CHARLESTON, W.Va. When she was first sentenced to time in prison, a West Virginia woman said she did not know what to expect.
“You’ve got to learn hard and you’ve got to learn fast,” said Crystal Allen who served three years in prison for shooting her first husband.
When she was released, she had little support, but eventually worked her way toward earning a real estate license.
Others, she said, don’t know that kind of path is possible.
“(They say) ‘I have a felony on my record. I can’t do nothing with that. I’m already hindered.’ So you have to create yourself a job and it’s hard at times if you don’t have that support,” Allen said.
For The Inter-Mountain
CHARLESTON Despite being left on the cutting room floor during efforts two years ago to pass a sweeping education overhaul, some lawmakers and education reform advocates want to take another look at education savings accounts.
A coalition of Republican lawmakers, conservative public policy groups, and advocates for choice in educational options held a virtual press conference Tuesday calling for passage of legislation creating the Hope Scholarship.
“Right now, our activists across the state are working to strongly encourage lawmakers to support the creation of education savings accounts in the state,” said Jason Huffman, the state director for the West Virginia chapter of Americans for Prosperity, a conservative grassroots advocacy organization.
Staff writer
SUPPORT Senate Education Committee Chairwoman Patricia Rucker said she supports new legislation to create education savings accounts.
CHARLESTON Despite being left on the cutting room floor during efforts two years ago to pass a sweeping education overhaul, some lawmakers and education reform advocates want to take another look at education savings accounts.
A coalition of Republican lawmakers, conservative public policy groups, and advocates for choice in educational options held a virtual press conference Tuesday calling for passage of legislation creating the Hope Scholarship.
“Right now, our activists across the state are working to strongly encourage lawmakers to support the creation of education savings accounts in the state,” said Jason Huffman, the state director for the West Virginia chapter of Americans for Prosperity, a conservative grassroots advocacy organization.
The process for replacing former Sen. Bill Brady, R-Bloomington, became more serious over the weekend as five Republican Party chairs met to discuss options.
Nine people have expressed interest to replace the former Senate minority leader who left his 44th legislative district seat on Dec. 31 after serving nearly six terms. The list includes four candidates from Logan County: former county clerk Sally Turner, Lincoln city administrator Elizabeth Kavelman, Lincoln Ward 3 Alderman Kevin Bateman and Illinois executive director of the USDA Farm Services Agency William Graff; four from Tazewell County: county board chair David Zimmerman, county board District 3 Representative Russ Crawford, Logan Warrick, and Tim Taylor; and from McLean County: Kyle Ham, a former chief executive officer of the Bloomington-Normal Economic Development Council.