Workman
CHARLESTON -- Chief Justice Margaret L. Workman will swear in seven sex offender intensive supervision officers (SOISO) at 2 p.m. Thursday in the Supreme Court Chamber, bringing the specialized group of officers to full force.
Six of the officers will work in Region IV, which covers Kanawha, Clay, Braxton, Gilmer, Webster, Nicholas, Calhoun, Jackson and Roane counties. They are Team Coordinator R. Jonathan Fields and Officers Kristen DeRito, Donald King, Angela Perdue, K. David Sales and Christopher Salmons II.
Workman also will be swearing in Stephanie Camp, who is filling a vacancy in Region III. That region covers Brooke, Doddridge, Hancock, Marshall, Ohio, Pleasants, Ritchie, Tyler, Wetzel, Wirt and Wood counties.
The specialized officers work under provisions of the Child Protection Act of 2006 (House Bill 101, passed June 14, 2006). The law requires extended supervision for sex offenders, especially those convicted of crimes against children.
The officers' only duty is to supervise sex offenders. They work out of their cars, not offices. They work holidays, nights, weekends, and hours in between to provide intensive supervision. The officers also work with circuit court judges and treatment providers to make sure offenders are complying with court orders. The extended supervision includes polygraph examinations and electronic monitoring.
The first group of sex offender probation officers was hired in November 2008. The supervision program was expanded one region at a time throughout the state. With the hiring of these officers, there are now 33 SOISO officers serving every county in West
Virginia.
The SOISO program was developed under the leadership of Justice Robin Jean Davis when she was Chief Justice in 2006 and 2007. Her support was crucial in refining the vision of the supervision protocol. Her work was a continuation of her interest in protecting children in our communities during her "Year of the Child" in 2006 and "Year of the Child, Too" in 2007.
