by Ron Gregory
ronjgregory@gmail.com
CHARLESTON — The Corridor Chronicle has confirmed our earlier rumored reports that former Mingo County Prosecuting Attorney Teresa Dawn Maynard will become chief Administrative Law Judge. The appointment has been made by Governor Earl Ray Tomblin.
Speculation had centered on a potential appointment for Maynard after she announced her resignation as Prosecutor last week. Her final day as county Prosecutor was Monday.
Williamson attorney Duke Jewell, who soundly defeated Maynard in the May primary election, was appointed Prosecutor by the County Commission Monday. He assumed office at midnight, yesterday. Originially, his term was to begin January 1, 2017.
The appointment of Maynard is not without controversy, as was her entire tenure as Mingo Prosecutor. Foes say Maynard was an ineffective Prosecutor, failing to prosecute obvious criminal actions during her tenure. She is also branded as a former “law partner” of disgraced Circuit Judge Michael Thornsbury, who was sentenced to a federal penal institution as a result of a corruption investigation in the county.
Her appointment prompted on Mingo politico to say, “Team Mingo will never be dead as long as Earl Ray Tomblin and Teresa Maynard are alive.”
One provision of the law permitting Tomblin to appoint Maynard includes a subsequent approval by the Senate. One Mingo County political leader told the Chronicle, “We’ll see about that. They (the Senate) will at least know all the facts about her before they appoint her.”
More details on the appointment will be forthcoming in your first source for Corridor G news, the Corridor Chronicle.
(Photo: Governor Tomblin poses with ex-Judge Michael Thornsbury in an archive photo).