By: Lydia Crawley
The 21st Circuit Court of West Virginia held court at the Tucker County Courthouse with the Honorable James W. Courrier, Jr. presiding.
In the matter of the State v. Jason Plumley was heard. Plumley was initially charged with possession of stolen goods, according the court. Per a plea agreement, Plumley pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor charge of receiving and transferring. Judge Courrier questioned Plumley and informed him of his rights under the law and then went on to explain the trial process for Plumley.
The case stemmed from a wood chipper stolen from the City of Parsons. According to Tucker County Prosecutor Savannah Hull Wilkins, the chipper was issued to Plumley as part of his job which he was later terminated from. A representative from the city reached out several times to no avail and the chipper was eventually reported stolen.
On July 12, 2021, the chipper was found in Plumley’s parents’ backyard. According to Wilkins, Plumley gave a statement that he had the chipper in his front yard for some time before it came up missing. Wilkins said that Plumley later located the chipper along Corridor H and after driving by it for some time, decided to take it home to do some work and then was going to leave it to be found later. The chipper has since been recovered.
Attorney Pat Nichols represented Plumley in the matter. Nichols said that Plumley had noticed the chipper along the road in Corridor H and was going to use it before he took it back. Nichols also asked that the court grant Plumley probation as he was a lifelong resident of Tucker County. “I don’t believe Mr. Plumley will be any problem what-so-ever,” Nichols said.