Seven law enforcement entities and one community enterprise were recognized today for their exquisite work within the greater Wheeling area. United States Attorney Bill Powell diagnosed the Marshall County Drug & Violent Crimes Task Force, Brooke County Prosecutor Joe Barki, and Ohio County Sheriff’s Cpl. John Hadlock, the YWCA’s Wind Program, and several different law enforcement agencies with U.S. Attorney Awards for their contributions to creating safer communities.
“I even have the notable pride to work with many law enforcement and different community-based specialists. We honor those individuals and businesses these days because they may be “distinction makers” in our communities. They constitute the first-rate people, and our communities are better due to their terrific work,” said Powell.
The Marshall County Drug & Violent Crimes Task Force was recognized for its work in a year-long investigation starting around February 2017 and persevering with thru March 2018, involving the distribution of crystal methamphetamine, cocaine, and heroin typically in Parkersburg, Sistersville, Paden City, and New Martinsville, WV, and Columbus, OH. The pills have been originating from a street gang in Columbus, OH. The research resulted in the indictments of eight gang contributors or associates from Columbus and 25 local WV redistributors.
This research dismantled the whole drug conspiracy operating in four federal districts to encompass the Northern District of West Virginia, the Southern District of West Virginia, the Southern District of Ohio, and the Northern District of Georgia. The Marshall County Drug Task Force comprises officers from the Marshall County Sheriff’s Office, the West Virginia State Police, the Moundsville Police Department, and the American Drug Enforcement Administration.
Brooke County Prosecuting Attorney Joseph Barki is a prosecuting attorney who has made a significant contribution to a shared challenge. Barki has been on the Hancock-Brooke-Weirton Drug & Violent Crime Task Force board for the than 16 years. In addition, he has been the president of the Board for the past 7 years. Before being elected Prosecutor in Brooke County, he became an Assistant Prosecuting Attorney in Ohio, Brooke, & Hancock Counties. During the beyond 16 years, he has tirelessly prosecuted drug crimes in Hancock, Brooke, and Ohio Counties. Joe has also been a notable collaborator on a few drug cases within the Northern Panhandle of West Virginia.
The YWCA of Wheeling does incredible work. From addressing home violence to schooling to recuperation and redemption, they offer a treasured and unmatched resource in the Ohio Valley. The WIND Program, or Women Inspired in New Directions, is where women from all walks of life can recover in supportive and safe surroundings. In addition, the Wind Program offers to assist the U.S. Attorney’s Office, willing to assist us with community outreach efforts at any time of year. The YWCA is a true companion from the reentry simulations to the Department of Justice’s Project Safe Neighborhoods initiative. The collaboration is useful to all worried.
Sgt. John Hadlock with the Ohio County Sheriff’s Office is the faculty aide officer at Madison Elementary School. Madison has many at-risk youngsters, many of whom were removed from their biological mother and father due to abuse and neglect, all the way to the drug epidemic. Sgt. Hadlock is a fine force inside the school, continually providing a caring smile and help to any student. He cares approximately the kids and their well-being, and it shows in his interactions with the children every day.
Earlier this year, he went above and past with 3 of the scholars. In early March, 3 siblings had been eliminated from the home; John and his spouse Stephanie didn’t hesitate to absorb all three youngsters. This couple, who have been married for more than 30 years and feature two grown kids, decided to adopt all 3 kids as a transient domestic to ensure they could stay at Madison and stay together. The rite was held in U.S. District Judge John Preston Bailey’s court docket and blanketed remarks from U.S. Attorney Bill Powell and the presence of many neighborhoods, state, and federal law enforcement leaders, for the duration of West Virginia.
