School officials: Hoover case likely won’t change policies

By MICHAEL ERB, merb@newsandsentinel.com
PARKERSBURG — The recent firing of a Wirt County school administrator for bringing rifles onto school grounds is unlikely to cause any policy changes at neighboring school districts.

The Wirt County Board of Education last month voted 3-2 to dismiss James D. Hoover from his position as principal of the Wirt County Middle School.

Hoover was suspended without pay in October of last year for taking two hunting rifles onto school property after retrieving them from the scene of a hunting accident at the request of a friend who was involved in the incident.

Hoover retrieved the rifles after an incident Oct. 8, 2007. Christopher Giffin was hunting when his future father-in-law, Tony McCloy, allegedly accidentally shot him in the head.

Hoover was charged with taking rifles onto school property, but the charges were dismissed by Wood County Circuit Court Judge Robert Waters after Hoover’s lawyer successfully argued the situation fell under provisions of West Virginia gun law that allowed unloaded weapons to be secured in a locked vehicle.

However, board members determined Hoover’s actions still violated school policies.

Wood County Schools Superintendent Bill Niday said he has followed only the basics of the Wirt County Schools case, but said there is little concern here locally.

“I think we have sufficient policies in place,” Niday said. “I don’t foresee any policy changes for Wood County Schools. I don’t see a need for any policy change.”

Howard O’Cull, executive director of the state School Boards Association, said few school boards are likely to rethink policies based on the Wirt County incident.

“I think it was a unique situation confined to that school district,” he said. “I haven’t heard any discussion of this among other school boards.”

Part of the reason few districts are likely to make changes based on the Hoover dismissal is because existing state laws already cover weapons on campus, regardless of who carries them.

Though Hoover was not charged criminally, his actions still violated school policy and the state’s Safe Schools Act, which prohibits any form of weapon on school grounds. The Safe Schools Act, adopted by the state in 1995, prohibits any object that fits the definition of a weapon, which includes knives and firearms, regardless of whether they are loaded or intended for use as a weapon.

“The safe schools laws are very strict, and they apply regardless of whether it is a student or a staff member,” O’Cull said.

“The issue here is having a weapon on school grounds, not who is carrying the weapon.”

Wood County Schools’ safe schools policies are based on the state’s Safe Schools Act. Local policies are reviewed every two years, but Niday said the local policy closely mirrors the state code.

O’Cull said that is the case with most West Virginia school systems, as policies must meet the basics of state code, but are permitted to be more strict, so long as they do not violate state or federal laws.

O’Cull also said every school district is required to have a school safety policy based on state and federal laws.

“I think most school systems have very tight policies,” he said.

“Wirt County is a very interesting case, but I don’t expect to see a lot of changes around the state as a result.”