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State trooper who 'polices the police' target of inquiry
By Tom Searls
STAFF WRITER CHARLESTON GAZETTE
State Police are conducting an internal investigation into the trooper who once said he "polices the police," after three female
employees filed sexual harassment complaints against him.
State Police confirmed Thursday that Maj. B.D. Gore, who is chief of executive services, is being investigated by his own
employees to establish if the complaints have any merit. Gore heads the agency's Professional Standards Unit, which
conducts all internal inquiries of troopers' actions.
"There is a PSU investigation" of Gore, confirmed State Police spokesman Lt. Mark Neal.
Three secretaries at the State Police executive offices in South Charleston filed the complaints Monday against the
45-year-old major. They allege that he has sexually harassed them and created a hostile work environment.
Two of the complainants did not report to work Thursday, and the third left early after being questioned by investigators.
One of the women complained to Gore's superiors about him last year. She and the other two say he has left sexually
harassing messages for them, including e-mail and text messages, made telephone calls to them and indicated that he wanted
to have sexual relations with them. One has said she had a short affair with him.
Gore is one of the highest-ranking members of the State Police, with only lieutenant colonels and the superintendent above
him. He is considered a finalist for the deputy superintendent's post, the No. 2 position with State Police.
Lt. G.A. Ingold, who heads the PSU and works under Gore, will conduct the investigation, Neal said.
Gore was not available for comment Thursday. Neal said he is on vacation.
The women have said they feel unsafe because Gore has not been suspended pending the outcome of the investigation and is
expected to return to work before the investigation is completed.
Placing troopers on paid or unpaid administrative leave during internal inquiries is not a standard policy for State Police.
"That's done on an individual basis," Neal said.
He said State Police executive officers are saying little about the investigation.
"I was told that there is a PSU investigation and that was all I was told," said Neal, who also, technically, works under
Gore.
A Rand native, Gore is the first black trooper to be promoted above the rank of lieutenant in the State Police. In 2001, Col.
Howard Hill promoted him from corporal to first sergeant to settle a grievance Gore and other troopers filed concerning
promotions.
In March of that year, Hill promoted him to captain, heading the Professional Standards Unit.
"I'm the one who polices the police," Gore said in a Gazette interview that year. "When [troopers are] in trouble, I'm the one
who causes an investigation to be done on them."
Gore worked as a paramedic and Kanawha County sheriff's deputy before he joined the State Police. He has worked at a
variety of positions during his State Police career, including a detachment trooper, Turnpike patrol and going undercover for
the State Police Bureau of Criminal Investigation, where he was assigned to the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and
Firearms.
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