Westover police officers call out one of their own, new chief named

WESTOVER, W.Va. — A letter signed by eleven Westover Police officers are calling for the removal of one of their fellow officers from the force.

The letter, was written by eleven officers of the Westover Police Department and cited numerous actions and offences that were considered egregious by the officer who’s name was redacted from the petition. This included accusations of civil rights violations, sexual misconduct, intimidation tactics and evidence tampering among 13 other listed violations.

This comes in the middle of an investigation pertaining to a civil rights lawsuit involving the Westover Police Department and Andre Howton, who was shown on body cam being assaulted by Westover officers during an incident on New Year’s Day 2019. The incident lead to the resignation of former Westover Police Chief Rick Panico who formally stepped down in September.

In a statement regarding the petition current investigation, Westover Mayor Dave Johnson stated that retired West Virginia State Trooper Joseph Adams will take over as Chief of the Westover Police Department. As for the alleged misconduct, Johnson stated that the City of Westover is co-operating with the Mon County Prosecutors office with the accused officer being put on leave until more information is discovered.

The separate civil rights lawsuit involving Westover PD and Andre Howton is still ongoing.