West Virginia legislation to increase penalties for homicides is headed to the governor’s desk but critics argued violent crime is down in the Mountain State and the bill would end up costing taxpayers.

Kenneth Matthews, West Virginia economic justice associate for the American Friends Service Committee, said many incarcerated individuals become rehabilitated and go on to lead productive lives in their communities. He knows men who have reentered society and become social workers or have worked with law enforcement. He added even those with no chance of leaving prison can help others find meaning in their lives.

"Guys whose, on paper, discharge date from custody is death," Matthews explained. "But they're mentoring guys such as myself, who went through their peer mentoring program, guiding these guys to live different than they did on the street."

Jail overcrowding and staffing shortages in the state have led to death rates significantly higher than the national average, according to a 2020 report from the ACLU of West Virginia. South Central in Charleston had the highest death rate, Eastern Regional Jail in Martinsburg had the highest number of suicides and Western Regional Jail in Barboursville had the most deaths caused by overdose.

Sara Whitaker, senior criminal legal policy analyst at the West Virginia Center on Budget and Policy, said this legislative session has been painful for West Virginians who had hoped for help with the real challenges facing the state, such as child care costs, school closures, unsafe drinking water and the price of health care.

She believes there is no evidence increasing penalties will do anything to keep West Virginians safer.

"The legislature appears to be completely unconcerned with what it will cost the state," Whitaker contended. "And the people who are most affected by our prison system, the people inside, their loved ones, even the folks who work in West Virginia state prisons."

West Virginia has seen a major increase in prison spending in the last several years. Between 2024 and 2025, prison costs ballooned from around $270 million annually to nearly $350 million.

Source: Public News Service