West Virginia
'Unity Breakfast' honors the legacy of Martin Luther King Jr. in Morgantown – WV MetroNews
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. The West Virginia University (WVU) Mountainlair Ballrooms were filled for the Martin Luther King Jr. Unity Breakfast Monday.
Interim Director of the Center for Black Culture, Javier McCoy, says we are celebrating the 60th anniversary of the “I Have a Dream” speech, and many continue to fight for their own dreams today.
“We are 60 years from August, from the “I Have a Dream” speech, and I think this references what that dream continues to mean to you, what you are fighting for, and how we are doing that together in unity and camaraderie with one another,” McCoy said.
The event happened to land on the birthday of the famed civil rights leader, January 15, prompting WVU President Gordon Gee to reflect on the state of the world today and the lack of discourse in society.
“Martin Luther King Jr. would have been 95 years old today,” Gee said. “In many ways, I think his influence is even more important today because of the lack of civility and respect we have in this nation.”
Janelle Labarbera, Stephanie Sarfo, Maya Wetherbee, Taya Sullivan, Bryan Hill, Sierra Worden, and Kamille Moore were each awarded a $1,500 Martin Luther King Jr. Scholarship. Moore is a junior from Beckley majoring in social work with minors in sociology. women and gender studies and communications.
“I want to be a social worker at J.W. Ruby Memorial Hospital, and I definitely want to be a patient advocate,” Moore said. “Black women go through a lot, and a lot of minorities are overlooked, and I want to make a change in that.”
Anitra Hamilton, D. Monongalia, 81, was the recipient of the 2024 Martin Luther King Jr. Award. In 2015, that award went to local community leader Don Spencer, who protested with Martin Luther King Jr. in Washington, D.C., back in the 1960s.
“So, I’ve always had a personal dimension in my relation to this day, for which I have been very grateful,” Spencer said.
Chairman of the Monongalia County Democratic Party Executive Committee, Cal Carlson, said the message of unity and equality is a good one as we prepare for primary election season. Carlson said voters should look for and support candidates who seek to serve all and not just a few.
“People who are going to embrace change for everybody, not just a select few in our community, because that is the only way forward in our state and in our nation right now,” Carlson said.
Losing to Kansas State wiped away all hope for West Virginia to make the NCAA Tournament. That seems to be the clear consensus in the Mountain State, but is there actually still a chance? Well, I guess so.
ESPN bracketologist Joe Lunardi still has West Virginia listed as a team to consider, the second team outside of the “next four out” grouping.
Lunardi’s current NCAA Tournament bubble
Last Four Byes: Missouri, Texas A&M, Texas, Ohio State
Last Four In: SMU, Santa Clara, New Mexico, Indiana
First Four Out: VCU, Auburn, Virginia Tech, Cincinnati
Next Four Out: San Diego State, USC, California, Seton Hall
Next: Stanford, West Virginia, Oklahoma, Arizona State
How is this even possible?
Short answer? I don’t really know.
My best guess as to why? Two things: the respect for the Big 12 and the opportunities left on the table, and two, an incredibly weak bubble.
Should West Virginia beat UCF on Friday, it will give the Mountaineers a 9-9 record in Big 12 play. That’s not as much of a guarantee to make the dance as having a winning record, but still, it’s an impressive mark, especially when, in this instance, they would have wins over Kansas, BYU, and sweeps over Cincinnati and UCF.
If you ask me, they still have too many bad losses for it to matter. I mean, even if they got red-hot out of nowhere and made it to the Big 12 championship game next week, is that enough? Potentially, but that’s a big IF.
The one thing WVU does have on its side is the number of Quad 1 wins, which they have five of. Virtually every other team in college basketball that has a minimum of five Quad 1 victories is expected to make the tournament. In that previously mentioned scenario, they would add at least one more Quad 1 win in the conference tournament, giving the committee something to think about.
The bubble is just incredibly weak, though. Like, how in the world is Auburn, who is 16-14 currently, the second team out of the field? Cincinnati, which WVU swept and has the same record as, is the fourth team in the “first four out” grouping.
At this point, the only path I see is for the Mountaineers to cut down the nets in Kansas City — good luck with that. We could be having a very different conversation if they didn’t lallygag their way through the first 30 minutes of the games against Utah and Kansas State.
Buckle up, Upshur County. Starting Friday, March 6, law enforcement officers across West Virginia will step up seatbelt enforcement as part of a statewide Click It or Ticket campaign running through March 23.
The West Virginia Governor’s Highway Safety Program (GHSP) announced the high-visibility mobilization as a warm-up to the national seatbelt campaign in May. The goal is to ensure every occupant — front seat or back, driver or passenger — is buckled on every trip.
“During this mobilization, law enforcement officers across West Virginia will be out in full force. They will be strictly ticketing drivers who are unbuckled or who are transporting children not properly restrained in car seats,” said Jack McNeely, Director of the GHSP.
The numbers behind the campaign are sobering. In 2023, 40% of passenger vehicle occupants killed in West Virginia crashes were unrestrained. The state’s seatbelt usage rate has also slipped — from 91.9% in 2024 to 91.6% in 2025.
Rural drivers face elevated risk despite a common assumption that country roads are safer. In 2023, 65% of the state’s traffic fatalities occurred in rural areas, compared to 35% in urban centers.
Under West Virginia law, wearing a seatbelt is required. A citation carries a $25 fine, though McNeely says the real point isn’t the penalty.
“Click It or Ticket isn’t about the citations; it’s about saving lives,” he said. “A ticket is a wake-up call. It is far less expensive than the alternative — paying with your life or the lives of your family and friends.”
For more information about the West Virginia Governor’s Highway Safety Program, visit highwaysafety.wv.gov or call 304-926-2509.
CLARKSBURG, W.Va. (WCHS) — A West Virginia man accused of threatening to attack President Donald Trump and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement workers was federally indicted this week.
Cody Lee Smith, 20, of Clarksburg was indicted on two counts of threats to murder the president, one count of influencing and retaliating against federal officials by threat of murder and one count of influencing a federal official by threat of murder, according to a news release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of West Virginia.
Smith is accused of making a series of public posts on Instagram encouraging and threatening the murder of Trump, those who support him, Israelis and “all government officials,” the news release said.
The indictment also alleges that Smith sent a direct message via Instagram to Donald J. Trump, Jr., stating he would kill his father by cutting his “jugular.”
In a phone call with the ICE tip line, Smith also threatened to kill ICE agents in Clarksburg and employees staffing the tip line.
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Smith faces up to 5 years for each of the presidential threat charges and faces up to 10 years in federal prison for each of the remaining counts.
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