By JOHN McVEY The Journal MARTINSBURG, W.Va.  — Denise Salmon Burditus, 50, of Martinsburg, was killed Sunday when a man opened fire on the audience of an outdoor country music concert in Las Vegas. Originally from Hedgesville, she and her husband, Tony, were attending the Jason Aldean concert during the[Read More…]

By JONATHAN WEAVER The Exponent Telegram CLARKSBURG, W.Va.  — A mass shooting that killed 59 country music fans on the final day of the Route 91 Harvest Festival in Las Vegas Sunday night has put local residents on edge and made some hesitant to attend such events. Dave Mick of Reynoldsville[Read More…]

By CASEY JUNKINS The Intelligencer and Wheeling News-Register WHEELING, W.Va. — Local law enforcement officials said they don’t believe additional gun control measures would have prevented Sunday’s deadly mass shooting in Las Vegas, as it already is illegal for most people to possess fully automatic weapons such as those the[Read More…]

By RUSTY MARKS The State Journal WHITE SULPHUR SPRINGS, W.Va.  — Political experts don’t know exactly which way West Virginia’s political winds will blow in upcoming elections, but they’re certain the state’s political climate is changing. “West Virginia is now a deeply red state,” said pollster Rex Repass, who conducts[Read More…]

By RUSTY MARKS The State Journal CHARLESTON, W.Va.  — Joel Bacon gathers about a dozen George Washington High School students into a fancy interview room on a high-tech bus in the school parking lot and asks them where they get their news. The bus, operated by cable news network C-SPAN[Read More…]

By BISHOP NASH The Herald-Dispatch HUNTINGTON, W.Va. — Federal support to insure around 9 million American children, including more than 48,000 in West Virginia, quietly expired at midnight Sunday as Congress failed to reauthorize the Children’s Health Insurance Program. Funded jointly by the federal and state government, CHIP has provided health[Read More…]

By KEN WARD JR. Charleston Gazette-Mail CHARLESTON, W.Va. — A Morgantown coal operator on Monday pleaded not guilty to charges that, for more than three years, he schemed to funnel illegal campaign contributions to four candidates for federal political office. James L. Laurita Jr. entered the not guilty plea during[Read More…]

By KEN WARD JR. Charleston Gazette-Mail CHARLESTON, W.Va. — A longtime industry consultant picked by President Donald Trump to head the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s chemical safety arm was involved in several major public health controversies in West Virginia. Toxicologist Michael Dourson was involved in the long saga over DuPont[Read More…]

By WENDY HOLDREN The Register-Herald BECKLEY, W.Va. — Despite a drop in cigarette smoking nationwide, a new report led by a West Virginia University public health expert shows minority groups are at higher risk for tobacco-related diseases than others. Published by the National Cancer Institute and led by Linda Alexander,[Read More…]