WQBE News

U.S. Senator Shelley Moore Capito is pushing the Justice Act, introduced in the Senate. The bill calls for law enforcement reform and focuses on training methods and changes in hiring practices.

West Virginia nursing homes can now have visitors, but with restrictions. Facilities with no COVID-19 cases in fourteen days can accept visitors by appoint. Masks and social distancing are required.

There are eighteen new cases of COVID-19 in West Virginia, bringing the total close to 24-hundred. The death toll remains at 88, and the positive test rate has dropped below one-point-seven percent.

Governor Justice says he’s concerned about several COVID-19 outbreaks in West Virginia. His remarks come after six churches in the state have been associated with outbreaks. More than thirty people have tested positive for the coronavirus at Graystone Baptist Church in Greenbrier County.

Two Kanawha County magistrate races are still in question. Ward Harshbarger beat Hollis Lewis, but Harshbarger didn’t file any campaign finance reports required by law. In Division-Seven Mike Ferrell beat incumbent Jess Bailes by nearly six-thousand votes, but attorneys claim Ferrell’s campaign finance reports are incomplete and missed the deadline.

A Nicholas County man is pleading no contest to a double murder charge. Roger Blankenship Sr. is accused of killing his wife and another man, and shooting himself in the face. Prosecutors are expected to recommend mercy as part of a plea deal.

Former U.S. Sen. Robert C. Byrd’s name is being removed from the Bethany College Health Center. Byrd was once a member of the Ku Klux Klan before entering politics and later expressed regret over his membership.

Putnam County school officials are looking ahead to the fall to plan out how to bring kids back to the classroom safely. A spokesperson for Putnam County Schools said they’re mapping out several different plans. One of the state school board’s options is for kids to go to school four days a week, with Fridays … Read more

The Boone County Health Department has confirmed a COVID-19 outbreak at a church in the Bloomingrose area of the county. The public health officer at the health department confirmed that the church at the center of the outbreak is the Bloomingrose Church of Christ. The church has been closed for the last two Sundays. There … Read more

The American Red Cross is now testing all blood, platelet and plasma donations for coronavirus antibodies. The Red Cross said there is an urgent need for blood donations, as blood drives continue to be canceled due to the pandemic. The organization said it expects the antibody testing will increase the public’s interest in donating. The … Read more