CHARLESTON – Someone who attended an event last week at the state Supreme Court chambers has tested positive for COVID-19, but it wasn’t any court employee who works at the Capitol.
On December 15, current Chief Justice Tim Armstead was sworn in for a new 12-year term after having retained the seat in this spring’s non-partisan election. According to press releases from the court, the number of people who attended the ceremony was limited because of Coronavirus concerns, and those who did attend followed social distancing and masking guidelines.
“Subsequent to the event, we were informed that another person present tested positive for COVID,” Armstead told The West Virginia Record in a December 21 statement. “Those in attendance were immediately informed of this fact so that they could take appropriate precautions which we understand may have included quarantine and testing.
“We are not aware of anyone else at the event who has tested positive.”
Because of privacy concerns, the name of the person who attended who tested positive is not available.
Armstead also said the court is not aware of any Supreme Court employees who work at the state Capitol testing positive.
“From time to time, employees may quarantine due to potential exposure to non-court or family contacts,” he told The Record.
At the ceremony, Armstead pledged to continue to work to restore public confidence in the state court system.
“I feel deeply honored and deeply privileged to be a member of this court,” Armstead said. “It is important that the people of our state have respect for their court.”
Armstead was appointed to the court in September 2018 by Gov. Jim Justice, and he was elected two months later to retain the seat until the end of the term on December 31, 2020. He was re-elected June 9, 2020, to a 12-year term that begins January 1, 2021.
U.S. District Court Senior Judge David A. Faber, who previously worked with Armstead at a law firm before he became a federal judge, swore Armstead in at the December 15 investiture ceremony. Armstead also was one of Faber’s first law clerks.
Before joining the court, Armstead was Speaker of the West Virginia House of Delegates. He was a member of the House from 1998 to 2018. He became Minority Leader in 2006 and Speaker in 2015.
He previously worked as Executive Assistant to the Chief of Staff of Governor Cecil Underwood. He is a graduate of the University of Charleston and West Virginia University College of Law. He lives in Elkview with his wife, Anna, and they have one daughter and two grandchildren.
