Three-Judge Panel to Hear Kanawha Prosecutor Petition

A three-judge panel will hear a petition seeking Kanawha County prosecutor Mark Plants’ removal from office.

The Kanawha County Commission filed the petition on Friday in circuit court. The petition says Plants isn’t performing the duties of his office.

On Monday, West Virginia Supreme Court Chief Justice Robin Davis appointed Preston County Circuit Judge Lawrance Miller, Berkeley County Circuit Judge Christopher Wilkes and Pleasants County Circuit Judge Tim Sweeney to hear the petition.

Plants faces charges of domestic battery involving his son and violating a domestic-violence protection order. A Kanawha County judge disqualified Plants and his staff from handling such cases after he was charged. The county hired special prosecutors to handle these cases and the criminal charges against Plants.