Welcome back to EP Digest. Every Thursday morning, the best local news, events, and happenings from Morgan, Berkeley, and Jefferson counties. Let's get into it.

Jefferson Flips Its Commission; Berkeley’s Commission President Loses by 241 Votes

Tuesday reshaped two of the Panhandle’s three county commissions. All results are unofficial until each county commission canvasses, or certifies, the vote; Morgan’s is Nov. 9–10.

Morgan: Commissioner Joel Tuttle (R) won another six-year term, 3,873 to 1,852 over Democrat Judith Shumate. Turnout hit 40%. County Clerk Kim Nickles, who ran the count, retires in December; commissioners will appoint one of four applicants. The Messenger has the county results.

Berkeley: Democrat Zondria “Z” Lansdowne unseated Commission President Eddie Gochenour in the Norborne District by 241 votes, 14,108 to 13,867. Commissioner Jim Whitacre kept his Shenandoah District seat. Republicans held House Districts 90 through 96, including Chris Clagett in the 91st with 58%, re-elected after this fall’s scrutiny of his social-media posts, and Chuck Horst in the 95th by 305 votes. Damon Wright won the open school board seat by 114 votes over Robert McCauley. Judge Joe Kinser keeps the 27th Circuit seat, 19,878 to 12,889 over Richard Stephens across Morgan and Berkeley. The Journal has the results.

Jefferson: Democrats won both County Commission seats on the ballot. Lanae Johnson beat Commission President Pasha Majdi 10,538 to 8,237 in the Harpers Ferry District. Mary Mickey Reagan beat Commissioner Steve Stolipher 12,433 to 7,143 in Kabletown. “It was a tough year for Republicans, and local scandals did not help,” Majdi told the Journal. In the House, Democrats unseated three Republican incumbents: Lucia Valentine beat S. Chris Anders in the 97th, Regina Dyer beat Wayne Clark in the 99th and Jenny Thacker beat Bill Ridenour in the 100th. Joe Funkhouser (R) held the 98th over Marta Beck. Jefferson was the only Panhandle county to favor Democrats Rachel Fetty Anderson for Senate and Ace Parsi for Congress. The Journal has the results.

Statewide: Republican Sens. Darren Thorne (15th) and Jason Barrett (16th) held their seats over Democrat Elizabeth Ferris and Libertarian Travis Bost. U.S. Sen. Shelley Moore Capito and Rep. Riley Moore won re-election. Amendment 1, on citizenship and voting, passed with 79.5% and carried all three counties. Details.

Paw Paw’s Old Train Depot Moves a Step Closer to Saving

Morgan County commissioners approved $4,500 in Hotel/Motel funds to help the Allegany Preservation Society Limited pay for a survey CSX requires before it will sell the old Paw Paw train depot, the Morgan Messenger reports. CSX has agreed to sell the depot and lot to the group for $4,600, and the deadline to finish the survey is Nov. 30. “The current goal is to acquire the Paw Paw station,” the society’s Trevor Laber told commissioners Oct. 21 in Paw Paw. If the group doesn’t buy it, he said, CSX could tear it down, as it has other old stations. The plan is to restore the depot, seek a spot on the National Register of Historic Places and open it to the public. The Messenger has the meeting.

Also in Morgan County: the Berkeley Springs Studio Tour kept town busy Oct. 24–25, with 16 artists showing at eight studios within 10 miles of town. The Messenger has the tour.

Berkeley Adopts Its Growth Plan and Starts on Data-Center Rules

The Berkeley County Commission unanimously adopted the county’s Comprehensive Plan, the guide for land use and growth over the next decade or two, the Journal reports. Commissioners then said they would start writing local rules for data centers, wind and solar. Commission President Eddie Gochenour said the county would revisit its data-center requirements “so that if we’re ever able to get out from under House Bill 2014 on some of these land use issues, we’ll have the proper documents in place to protect the neighbors and the water.” The 2025 state law limits how much counties can regulate qualifying data centers. “I think it would be hypocritical of us to not have this in place,” Commissioner John Hardy said. Commissioner Steve Catlett was blunt about the plan itself: “The comprehensive plan doesn’t have any teeth in it, it’s just a guideline.” The Journal has the vote.

The school-funding fight: Berkeley County Schools sent the state its 30-day notice of intent to sue over the school aid formula Oct. 21. Now state officials, including House Speaker Roger Hanshaw and Senate President Randy Smith, have asked the state Supreme Court to put the separate ACLU of West Virginia case, filed for Lincoln County families, on hold until April 12, 2027, after the next legislative session. Their lawyers say the Department of Education has already sent the governor and legislative leaders a formula overhaul that could make the case moot. Changes to special-needs funding alone could cost up to $190 million. The Joint Standing Committee on Education takes it up Nov. 9. The Journal has the filing.

Also in Berkeley County: the Martinsburg Farmers Market’s move from the Roundhouse to West King Street, near the library, paid off in its first full season. Vendors’ sales were up an estimated 60% to 70%. “It’s been one of the best seasons ever,” market manager Kathryn Rowley said. Details.

A Court Filing Revives the Stolipher–Sidewinder Question

A document filed in a defamation lawsuit has reopened a months-long question at the Jefferson County Commission: whether Commissioner Steve Stolipher has any tie to Sidewinder Enterprises, the California company trying to build the Mountain Pure water-bottling plant in Middleway, the Spirit of Jefferson reports. The suit was filed by his wife, former Charles Town Utility Board manager Kristen Stolipher, against fellow Commissioner Cara Keys over Keys’ comments at a September commission meeting. Keys denies defaming anyone and calls it a suit meant to stifle public debate.

In her response to the suit, Keys filed a redacted 2022 brokerage document from OakCrest Commercial Realty that shows Stolipher as the signing agent on a land sale to Sidewinder and one of its principals, the Spirit reports. Keys says the full document shows he represented Sidewinder as well as the landowners. Stolipher says he was the sellers’ agent only, “NOT REPRESENTING ANY BUYER,” and that he has no affiliation with Sidewinder. He also says Keys threatened to tie him to the project if his wife didn’t drop the suit; Keys says that never happened.

Commission President Pasha Majdi said the allegations “raise serious questions that demand answers” and should go to the prosecuting attorney and independent counsel. Majdi has put a “Discussion on potential conflicts of interest in Sidewinder Litigation” on the Commission’s agenda for Thursday, Nov. 5, at 9:30AM. Both Majdi and Stolipher lost their seats Tuesday (see The Lead). No court has ruled on the defamation claims, and no one has been charged with anything. The Spirit has the documents.

Also in Jefferson County: every proposed route for the Valley North transmission line would cut through Catherine and Rob Kemmerling’s regenerative farm on part of the historic Hopewell Plantation along the Shenandoah, the Spirit of Jefferson reports. The project would string about 260 miles of 765-kilovolt line from the Kanawha Valley to Northern Virginia. Kemmerling, an Army combat veteran, says the line would make the farm “virtually unsellable.” “It’s us against the state. It’s us against the power line,” she said. At Thursday’s meeting, commissioners are set to consider a letter calling Valley Link’s open-house format “unacceptable” and asking for written answers to about 50 questions by Dec. 15. The Spirit has the story.

A Guilty Plea in the Sheriff’s Office Fraud Case

A guilty plea: former Berkeley County Sheriff’s Office employee Lisa Lee French, 48, of Martinsburg, pleaded guilty Tuesday in federal court to conspiracy to commit bank fraud, admitting her role in a scheme that ran from 2007 to October 2024, the Journal and PNN report. According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office, the scheme involved more than 700 fraudulent transactions, including more than 550 forged checks on at least 59 conservator accounts, with losses of nearly $3 million. French agreed to pay $2,737,932.33 in restitution and faces up to 30 years in prison. No sentencing date is set. The Journal and PNN were in court.

Her co-defendant, Barbara Gail Gooden, 60, remains charged and is set for trial March 23, 2027. The charges against Gooden are allegations — she has not been convicted.

A school board member in court: Berkeley County Board of Education member Yvonne Jenkins, 62, pleaded not guilty Oct. 28 in Berkeley County Magistrate Court to a first-offense misdemeanor shoplifting charge, the Journal reports. According to the criminal complaint filed by Martinsburg Police, store surveillance footage allegedly shows her concealing merchandise and using a different price tag at the Martinsburg Walmart on Oct. 14; the complaint puts the merchandise at less than $500. She was released on a $500 personal recognizance bond. Jenkins was elected to the board in May and sworn in July 1. The Journal has the case.

The charge is an allegation — Jenkins has not been convicted.

An indictment in a fatal I-81 crash: a Berkeley County grand jury has indicted Donte Thornhill, 29, of Westerly, R.I., on one count of gross child neglect resulting in death, PNN reports. The charge stems from a Jan. 4 crash on I-81 in which his pickup collided with a tractor-trailer and his 5-year-old daughter was killed. According to the criminal complaint, as reported by PNN, there was evidence that neither was wearing a seatbelt; Thornhill told police he was going the speed limit and was struck from behind. Rhode Island troopers arrested him in July on a West Virginia fugitive warrant. The charge carries up to 15 years if he is convicted. PNN has the details.

The charge is an allegation — Thornhill has not been convicted.

About 70 indictments: the grand jury’s Oct. 20–22 session returned roughly 70 indictments, Prosecuting Attorney Raymond E. Boyce Jr. announced, on charges ranging from drug delivery resulting in death to burglary, strangulation and domestic battery. The full list.

Indictments are allegations — none of those indicted has been convicted.

What homes are selling for across the Panhandle

The picture right now: Across the Eastern Panhandle, the typical single-family home sold for $389,900 in October, across 203 closings we logged. County by county: Morgan near $352,500 (23 sales), Berkeley near $359,500 (104 sales), and Jefferson near $449,495 (76 sales).

Worth watching: Inventory. 825 homes are listed or coming soon across the three counties — Morgan 90, Berkeley 460, Jefferson 275 — including 34 “coming soon” listings about to hit the market. On size, that pencils out to about $224 a square foot for a typical detached home.

One that caught our eye: A $1,150,000 home in Gerrardstown.

Based on information from Bright MLS for October 1–31, 2026. Single-family detached closings we logged; medians, not averages. Compiled by EP Digest.