West Virginia
‘Without a donor, I probably wouldn’t be sitting here talking to you right now.’
CHARLESTON, W.Va. (WSAZ) – What looks like two words on a license to most people, means a second chance at life to Tabitha Adkins.
“Without a donor, I probably wouldn’t be sitting here talking to you right now,” said Tabitha Adkins, an organ donor recipient.
After receiving the call that saved her life one year ago, Adkins spends West Virginia Donor Day sharing the importance of organ donations.
“There’s over 500 individuals in the state of West Virginia waiting for that life-changing phone call, and everybody out here can be the potential to be a hero,” Adkins said.
More than 100,000 U.S. residents are on the transplant list and more than 500 of those waiting are West Virginia residents, but only 36% of West Virginians are registered organ donors.
The Center of Organ Recovery and Education (CORE) is a non-profit organization serving Pennsylvania and West Virginia.
Traveling all over the state, CORE talks about organ donation and helps people register to be an organ donor. CORE says their mission is to “save and heal lives through donation.”
Twelve hospitals and eight DMVs in West Virginia have tables with information about organ donation and ways to register as an organ donor setup.
Craig Powers volunteers for CORE because organ donation hits home for him. Twenty-two years ago, he made the decision to donate an organ to his brother.
“In August of 2002, August the 9th I donated him a kidney and he has been doing great since then,” Powers said.
To find more information about organ donation tap here. Anyone can register to be an organ donor there.
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West Virginia
Morrisey signs Baylea’s Law, increasing criminal penalties in W.Va. for DUI causing death
CHARLESTON, W.Va. (WCHS) — West Virginia Gov. Patrick Morrisey officially signed House Bill 4712 into law on Friday.
The bill, better known as Baylea’s Law, increases criminal penalties against those who are convicted of driving under the influence resulting in death. The bill is named after Baylea Bower, a 24-year-old woman from Boone County who was killed in a car crash on Easter in 2025 caused by a drunk driver.
The bill passed the House in February, with several of Bower’s family and friends gathered at the West Virginia Capitol in support of the bill.
“Obviously we’re going to be heartbroken,” Bower’s friend India Henderson said. “We have the lifetime sentence of not having Baylea. But if this does help save a life in the future and cause someone to not want to go out and cause this tragedy, then that is a win.”
In accordance with the passage of the bill, Baylea’s Law will take effect on June 12.
“West Virginia will no longer allow those who drive while impaired to escape the full weight of justice,” Morrisey said Friday in a press release. “Baylea’s Law gives our legal system the teeth to demand absolute accountability for the most heartbreaking crimes. Today, our laws stand firmly on the side of victims and their families.”
Specifically, Baylea’s Law introduces the offense of aggravated DUI resulting in death, which will carry the following mandatory sentences, according to a release from Morrisey’s office:
- Five to 30 years in prison
- Fine of $2,000 to $10,000
- Lifetime revocation of the offender’s driver’s license
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