MARONEY

West Virginia Sen. Mike Maroney has been removed as chairman of the Senate’s Committee on Health and Human Resources following his arrest Tuesday night.

Senate President Craig Blair, R-Berkeley, said he made the move, as well as relieved Maroney of all his other committee responsibilities, to “give him appropriate time to dedicate to his personal issues.” Maroney was arrested Tuesday on misdemeanor charges of indecent exposure and disorderly conduct after an alleged incident Aug. 4 at a Glen Dale gaming establishment.

“Above all, I am deeply concerned for our friend and colleague, Senator Mike Maroney,” Blair said in a statement released Wednesday morning. “The facts that have emerged are troubling, and I am disappointed. However, in this time, our primary focus is on the well-being of Senator Maroney. Like all citizens, Senator Maroney is entitled to full due process as this matter works its way through the legal system. We join in prayer for our friend Mike and his family as he deals with these issues.

“While the charges are still under investigation, if true, this allegation is obviously not up to the standard of what we expect from our elected leaders in the State Senate of West Virginia,” Blair added.

Maroney was defeated by Monongalia County resident Chris Rose in the State Senate District 2 Republican primary earlier this year.

Original story

GLEN DALE – West Virginia Sen. Dr. Michael Maroney was arrested Tuesday evening on a pair of misdemeanor charges – disorderly conduct and indecent exposure – following an alleged incident at a Glen Dale gaming establishment.

Marshall County Prosecutor Joe Canestraro said Tuesday night that Glen Dale Police Chief Ed Vogler filed the complaint Tuesday in Marshall County Magistrate Court for the incident, which occurred Sunday, Aug. 4. According to the West Virginia Regional Jail Authority website, Maroney was booked at the Northern Regional Jail at 6:38 p.m. Tuesday.

According to Canestraro, employees of the gaming establishment called Glen Dale police that Sunday to report a person allegedly committing “an overt act of sexual gratification” in the establishment’s lottery room.

No one was in the room when the alleged act occurred, Canestraro said. The employees alleged to have seen the act on the establishment”s surveillance camera.

Canestraro said that when police arrived, they allegedly found Maroney in the lottery room. After talking to Maroney, police asked him to leave.

Maroney, a Marshall County Republican, was first elected to his state Senate District 2 seat in 2016 and reelected in 2020. He was defeated in the 2024 primary by Monongalia County resident Chris Rose.

Maroney could not be reached Tuesday night for comment.