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The Grant County Clerk’s office is already reporting high turnout for the county just a few days into early voting. 

In-person early voting for the 2024 General Election began locally on Oct. 23 at the Grant County Courthouse in Petersburg. The ballot includes the nationally contentious presidential race between current Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump.

While presidential elections generally bring out a higher voter turnout rate, the West Virginia Secretary of State’s office has said this election appears to be the “highest it’s been in the last several elections.”

The Grant County Dog Pound is set to get a new round of updates and improvements thanks to a $28,500 grant from the Federation of Humane Organizations (FOHO) of West Virginia. 

The county received an award letter from the organization last week during their regularly scheduled County Commission meeting. 

 County administrator Michelle Sites explained that the county had not originally been awarded any funds from the grant application. However, after the program reconsidered multiple smaller county applications, Grant County was added to the winners’ list.

A deadly car accident claimed three lives this week when a truck collided head-on with a vehicle driven by a Grant County woman.

According to reporting by WHSV, Harrisonburg, Va., the collision happened in Frederick County on Sunday afternoon. 

The accident, which is currently being investigated by the Virginia State Police, occurred at 1:42 p.m. near the intersection of Wardensville Pike and Bushy Ridge Drive.

 The Petersburg City Council confirmed last week that this year’s Trick-or-Treat event will be held on Halloween night (Oct. 31) starting at 6 p.m.

The council asked that anyone interested in participating leave their porch lights on to let trick-or-treaters and their families know which households will be giving out sweets this year.

The announcement came during the council’s regularly scheduled Oct. 7 meeting.

 Grant County’s former ambulance director has filed a lawsuit claiming he was removed from the position due to whistle-blower retaliation and discrimination following an incident in which an ambulance driver illegally pulled a concealed firearm and physically punched a suspect during a domestic violence incident.

Robert Funk worked as the county’s Director of Emergency Medical Services (EMS) and Emergency Medical Technician (EMT) since August 2017 until February 2024 when he was removed from the position.

In the first section of his complaint, which was filed last month in the Grant County Circuit Court, Funk described an incident in 2020-21 when Grant County Ambulance was contacted by Grant Memorial Hospital and requested a mental hygiene patient be transported out of the county. After the transport, Funk contacted the West Virginia Bureau for Public Health, Office of Emergency Medical Services and was advised not to transport mental hygiene patients in the future.

 Grant County Schools will be hosting the Charleston Clay Center’s Clay2Go Outreach Exhibit, a large exhibit that offers interactive education and experience with scientific concepts.

Grant County Superintendent Mitch Webster said he saw the exhibit on display in another area and was impressed with the scientific interactivity and quickly began working to bring it to Grant County.

“There was a long wait list and a lot of work that goes into something like this, but I came back and went to Ms. [Linda] Carlson and asked if she would take this on and get it arranged, and she did, and I greatly appreciate that,” Webster explained.

 A local peer recovery coach and counselor was honored yesterday as a “Beacon of Hope” in the community, being awarded the 2024 Beacon of Hope award during a ceremony at Grant Memorial Hospital by the Mosaic Group.

Roger Dodd works not only with the Potomac Highlands Guild and the Russ Hedrick Resource and Recovery Center but also serves as a first contact for those hospitalized from overdose at Grant Memorial Hospital and Potomac Valley Hospital in Keyser.

“Roger’s commitment to patients is nothing short of extraordinary,” said Marla Oros, the CEO of the Mosaic Group. “He embodies the essence of a peer recovery coach, tirelessly dedicating himself to guide individuals on their path to recovery from substance abuse. Roger’s role is not just about providing support, it’s about promoting health and preventing harm. He stands as a guardian for those who may have lost their way.”

 Domestic violence is one of the most common violent crimes that passes through Grant County’s court system.

Over the past few months, one dangerous charge that has been appearing multiple times is strangulation. This is charged anytime a person “strangles, suffocates or asphyxiates another without that person’s consent and thereby causes the other person bodily harm or loss of consciousness.”

One of the more recent charges stem from an incident on June 14, when officers with the Grant County Sheriff’s Department were dispatched to a dispute at Shobes Trailer Drive in Petersburg.