A M Stone | WVOW News
LOGAN A Logan County Magistrate has announced his intention to retire at the end of the year.
In this week’s edition of the Logan Banner, Magistrate Dwight Williamson announced his retirement in his latest weekly column. The very column that has got the magistrate in hot water with the Judicial Investigation Commission recently for comments Williamson made about his opinions on drug dealers and the punishment needed for those dealing fentanyl.
Williamson was the subject of a complaint filed with the investigation arm of the West Virginia judicial system in June. Williamson was a news reporter for the publication before entering into politics and running for magistrate. He has been a magistrate for twenty-four years and was recently elected to another four year term in May
Williamson has been under investigation before by the JIC resulting in a public admonishment and thirty day suspension without pay in two instances.
According to the JIC, the most recent complaint is about a column first published in October 2023. Williamson vented his dismay with the rise of fentanyl and the ever-present drug plague in southern West Virginia. He wrote that a trafficker dealing in fentanyl “in any form is a murderer and should be dealt with accordingly.” Moreover, Williamson said he wasn’t opposed to the death penalty for drug dealers.
According to his column in the Banner Wednesday, Williamson said he has cut a deal with the Ethics Commission to retire at the end of his term on December thirty-first. He said he had three options. First, he could be suspended for three months and no long er permitted to write his column. The second option was to take a six month suspension and continue writing the column. Pending approval by the West Virginia Supreme Court, Williamson has suspended writing his column until after his retirement.
WVOW News spoke with Magistrate Williamson Wednesday and he says that he is ready to retire. He cited many reasons from spending time with family to being generally tired. He also made apparent he has plans for after he leaves the magistrate bench that he is not yet ready to give any details.
“I feel like I can do better for Logan County not being a magistrate as I can being a magistrate,” Williamson said.
Williamson also said the speaking freely and openly without reprisal was a motivator in his decision. According to the rules, judges and magistrates are subject to a strict code where they must comply with law and promote the public confidence in the independence, integrity, and impartiality of the judicial branch. Magistrates must also avoid publicly expressing opinions on political matters or on pending cases.
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