JAN CAHILL

CHARLESTON — A recent lawsuit filed by the former superintendent of the West Virginia State Police is shining new light on a scandal that broke more than two years ago involving alleged wrongdoing by troopers.

Jan Cahill, the former superintendent of the State Police, filed a lawsuit on April 7 in Kanawha County Circuit Court against the State of West Virginia and the Department of Homeland Security, alleging he was pressured to resign against his will in 2023 and that officials in former Gov. Jim Justice’s administration were retaliating against him for raising concerns about COVID-19 spending.

“Plaintiff’s refusal to assist Former Chief of Staff (Brian) Abraham and Former Secretary (Jeff) Sandy in an unwarranted expansion of the powers of the Fusion Center into a law enforcement agency and his questioning and initial refusal to comply with the reporting for the CARES Act COVID-related expenses motivated these government agents to remove Mr. Cahill from his position as State Police Superintendent,” wrote Stephen New, the attorney representing Cahill.

Justice, now one of West Virginia’s two U.S. senators, announced on March 20, 2023, that Cahill — the former sheriff of Greenbrier County whom Justice appointed as State Police superintendent in 2017 — resigned that morning following a meeting at Justice’s Lewisburg home. Cahill was replaced as superintendent by Jack Chambers, formerly the deputy director of the West Virginia Capitol Police.

According to Cahill’s lawsuit, conflict arose early on between himself and former Homeland Security cabinet secretary Sandy and Abraham, Justice’s chief of staff. Cahill claims Sandy — a former U.S. Treasury agent and Wood County sheriff — expressed interest to Cahill about being named State Police superintendent.

Part of the conflict involved the West Virginia Fusion Center, a civilian state agency that allows local, state and federal law enforcement and public safety agencies to share resources, expertise and information. New argued that his client resisted efforts to expand the center’s powers into law enforcement without State Police oversight and opposed merging the West Virginia Intelligence Exchange into the Fusion Center under those conditions.

“Mr. Cahill had been advised by intelligence analysts with the WVIX, personnel from the FBI, and an Intelligence Analyst with the West Virginia Southern District’s United States Attorney’s Office that a civilian operated Fusion Center should not act as a law enforcement agency without the oversight of the State Police,” New wrote.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, Cahill claimed that Abraham advised the State Police to attribute their entire payroll to COVID expenses under the federal CARES Act, but any money received in that manner would go into the state’s general revenue fund through the Governor’s Office. The comptroller for the State Police raised concerns about submitting a $26 million CARES Act reimbursement when the actual reimbursements claimed by the State Police were closer to $1 million.

According to New, Cahill ordered the comptroller to only claim reimbursement for tangible costs, such as gloves, masks, thermometers, sprayers and cleaning supplies, along with the payroll of those off from work due to COVID. But after Abraham called and complained about the low dollar amount, the State Police complied with Abraham’s direction to submit the State Police’s entire payroll for CARES Act reimbursement.

The Department of Homeland Security released the results of an internal investigation of top leadership of the West Virginia State Police on March 20, 2023, after the Governor’s Office, then-Attorney General Patrick Morrisey and Charleston-area media outlets received an anonymous letter around July 2022.

Allegations in the letter included the use of ghost accounts by State Police officials to get around state purchasing rules, misuse of state purchasing cards for personal purchases, extramarital affairs between officers and fights, misuse of federal grants, overtime abuse and more. News of the anonymous letter was broken by WCHS-TV around February 2023.

“Mr. Cahill and the State Police were blindsided by a news segment from WCHS in which an interview with (Sandy) was aired regarding scandal and corruption in the State Police,” New wrote in the complaint. “Former Secretary Sandy stated that he had already confirmed and substantiated corruption with the State Police stemming from the anonymous letter.”

One claim in the letter now at the heart of a class action lawsuit against the State Police involved allegations that a now-deceased State Police employee placed cameras in the women’s locker room at the State Police Academy in Institute. Another allegation that was confirmed by an internal investigation involved two State Police troopers who stole money from an individual at Mardi Gras Casino and Resort in Kanawha County in 2021.

Cahill claims he was never made aware of the incident at Mardi Gras casino prior to a Feb. 16, 2023, meeting with Abraham. According to the lawsuit, one of the officers involved was later exonerated and the actions of other officers involved were only found to be suspicious.

Cahill also claims he informed Justice that the State Police Academy locker room recordings occurred prior to 2017 under a previous administration. Cahill’s meeting with Justice at his home came after learning that Abraham had intended to send a text to Cahill on March 19, 2023, notifying Cahill that he was terminated.

“Mr. Cahill perceived that his position would be terminated at the request of Former Secretary Sandy and Former Chief of Staff Abraham and that the Governor would not accept any reasonable explanation for Mr. Cahill’s actions,” New wrote. “Mr. Cahill resigned and/or was constructively discharged as State Police Superintendent on March 20, 2023, although his last date on all paperwork was March 15, 2023, unbeknownst to him.”

Sandy retired as Homeland Security secretary in July 2023, replaced by former Putnam County Prosecuting Attorney Mark Sorsaia. Sandy is now a member of the West Virginia First Foundation, the nonprofit which oversees distribution of opioid settlement dollars. A request for comment sent to Sandy’s West Virginia First email address was not returned Tuesday.

Abraham is now chief of staff in Justice’s U.S. Senate office. In a phone call Tuesday afternoon, Abraham denied the claims made by Cahill in his lawsuit.

“There is so much documentation refuting what Cahill is claiming that I’m surprised an attorney would even take the case,” Abraham said.

Cahill is seeking compensatory damage and any other relief he is entitled to by law.