| By Bob Weaver
Andy Cheuvront has settled another contentious problem as Sheriff of Wirt County.
The West Virginia Ethics Commission has entered into an agreement with Cheuvront following a complaint filed against him involving money from the sale of a gun, an alleged violation that prohibits public officials from using their office for their own private gain.
The Ethics Commission said Cheuvront, in reaching an agreement, "freely and voluntarily acknowledged that by not recording or depositing the cash received by the Sheriff's Department...demonstrates a lack of judgment and failure to comply with commonly accepted accounting principles."
Cheuvront agreed to a public reprimand and agreed to reimburse the Ethics Commission for costs of the investigation.
The agreement further says cooperation with the Ethics Commission will disallow sanctions that could have called for a fine not to exceed $5,000 and a recommendation that he be removed from office.
The 2007 ethics complaint was filed against Cheuvront alleging that a Glock pistol was given to the sheriff and was later sold for personal gain.
According to the facts of the case presented in the press release, in 2003, the Wirt County Sheriff's Department decided to purchase two Glock Model 21 .45-caliber handguns.
A private citizen offered to purchase one of the weapons for the department and Cheuvront accepted the offer of the donation. The two weapons were purchased in February 2003, with one registered in Cheuvront's name and the other in the name of Chief Deputy Lewis J. Peck.
Chief Deputy Lewis Peck made the decision to sell his Glock to a member of the Wood County Sheriff's Department around April 19, 2006, for $475.
That money was deposited into the Wirt Sheriff's Department Concealed Weapons Account.
Between August 2005 and April 2006, Cheuvront sold a Glock registered in his name to a local citizen.
The Ethics Commission said no receipt from the sheriff's department was issued to the citizen and the money was not deposited into a county bank account at that time.
Cheuvront said he put the cash in a sheriff's department envelope and stored that in his office, with no personnel in the sheriff's office informed about where the proceeds of the sale were, says the Ethics Commission release.
The sheriff's office is required to submit a monthly financial statement to the county clerk's office.
The report said at no point did Cheuvront indicate that there was $500 in cash which was in the possession of his office from the sale of the weapon.
Cheuvront, following the complaint in 2007, apparently filed a receipt related to the gun transaction and made a deposit in the department's concealed weapons account.
Cheuvront told the Parkersburg News the money had been intended for the purchase of new weapons.
In 2006 Sheriff Cheuvront engaged in a heated battle with the Wirt Commission and the county's local magistrates.
He was at odds with the county commission after he wrecked his cruiser while he and his girlfriend vacationed in Myrtle Beach.
Cheuvront also ended up paying back personal phone calls he charged to the county.
He was also called to task by the magistrate court for his management of the county's home confinement program.
Cheuvront claimed he had done nothing wrong, and threatened to bring suit against the county commission.
In what seemed like a comedy of errors, following months of contention, the sheriff paid a $1000 deductible to the Wirt Commission to settle the cruiser issue.
The sheriff had purchased a 2002 Ford Crown Victoria cruiser with his own money, which he then leased to the county.
He contended that the lease agreement allowed him to use the vehicle for sheriff's business and as his private vehicle.
The county's insurance apparently paid most of the damages in the two-car collision.
Another problem faced by the sheriff, Wirt County's two magistrates, C. David Roberts and Janey Wigal, complained to the commission that the sheriff had not properly managed home confinement cases.
The magistrates said "We will be reluctant to sentence any further individuals to home confinement...unless minimally accepted procedures...are put into place and sufficient oversight instituted."
Cheuvront said he felt the program was running as it should.
The magistrates, through the county commission, apparently reached accord with the sheriff following a set of standards.
Cheuvront claimed he had been publicly judged and ridiculed by the commission, saying he received "a multitude of support from well-wishers."
Cheuvront is currently running for a magistrate's seat in Wirt.
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