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Out for Justice: State Sen. Trump begins run for West Virginia Supreme Court

By Steven Allen Adams 6 min read

CHARLESTON -- He has spent more than 23 years helping write many of West Virginia's laws and could be called the father of the state's new Intermediate Court of Appeals, but state Sen. Charles Trump IV is ready for the challenge of interpreting the state's laws.

Trump, R-Morgan, is seeking one of two seats up for election in 2024 for the West Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals. If he wins, it will be the culmination of decades of legislative experience and public service that has made up most of Trump's life.

"Serving on the Supreme Court is something that I've always thought that I would love to do," Trump said by phone Friday. "The focus of my whole professional life has been the law and public service. Ultimately, the Supreme Court is a place where I've always thought I could make an important contribution."

Justice C. Haley Bunn filed precandidacy papers seeking a full 12-year term on the state's highest court in 2024 after being appointed by Gov. Jim Justice in 2020 to replace former justice Evan Jenkins. Justice John Hutchison announced last week that he would not seek re-election to a full 12-year term in 2024 after being appointed by Justice in 2018 and winning a special election in 2020.

With Hutchison choosing to retire at the end of his term in 2024, it leaves an open seat on the court. Trump first announced his campaign for state Supreme Court on WV MetroNews Talkline with host Hoppy Kercheval the day after Hutchison's announcement. Trump said he would have never challenged a sitting justice, but with an open seat he decided to make the attempt.

"It sort of has been a tornado in the last week," Trump said with a laugh. "I had sort of ruled out being a candidate in 2024 because I wasn't thinking I would run against Justice Hutchison or Justice Bunn, the, the two incumbent justices whose seats are up for election in 2024. But the world changed when Justice Hutchison announced that he intended not to be candidate himself next year.

"I did some soul searching and went through the usual checklist," Trump continued. "Conversations with family and law partners and others had encouraged me to consider it. And so I thought, well, if I'm going to consider it and do it, I should make an early announcement. And so I did."

The 62-year-old Trump, an attorney based in Berkeley Springs, is a graduate of Princeton University and has his law degree from West Virginia University. He joined Trump and Trump, his family's law firm that has been in existence since the 1920s.

Trump served seven two-year terms in the House of Delegates, first elected in 1992 and serving until 2006. The Republican House caucus chose him to serve as House Minority Whip and House Minority Leader during his tenure in the House.

After an eight-year break from legislative service, Trump was recruited in 2014 to run for state Senate, defeating former Democratic state senator Donald Cookman. Trump won reelection to the Senate in 2022, defeating third party candidate Robin Mills by more than 60 points.

Trump is chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, one of the Senate's major committees and busiest committees. Most bills end up before the Senate Judiciary Committee for review.

"I would hope that all of those experiences of my life would help me to become a good associate justice of the Supreme Court of Appeals and benefit the process of writing opinions to decide cases that come before the court," Trump said.

Besides helping add to West Virginia's legal code, Trump helped shepherd a bill to create the state's first Intermediate Court of Appeals, now part of the state's legal system that includes circuit court judges, family court judges, magistrates, probation, and other services that the justices of the Supreme Court oversee.

"The judicial branch of our state government is so important to making sure that the courthouse doors are open and that all the citizens of West Virginia have full opportunity to receive equal justice under the law," Trump said. "I take that responsibility and commitment very seriously. Part of doing that is making sure that the system functions across the whole state and every county of the state throughout all the different tiers and levels of our court system efficiently and fairly for the citizens."

Two different commissions in 1997 and 2009 recommended the state create an intermediate appeals court. The state Supreme Court changed its rules to issue written rulings on all appeals, but legal reform advocates still called for a separate intermediate court to focus on appeals while the state Supreme Court focuses on cases of consequence.

Trump introduced several bills during his legislative tenure to create an intermediate court. That dream became reality in 2021 when the Legislature finally passed a bill to create the court, going active last summer. Senate Bill 275, the West Virginia Appellate Reorganization Act, created a three-judge intermediate court between the circuit courts and the Supreme Court.

The ICA hears non-criminal appeals of circuit court cases, family court cases and guardianships and conservatorships; appeals of administrative law judge decisions and final orders, appeals of workers' compensation decisions, and decisions by the state Health Care Authority. The creation of the ICA is something Trump is very proud of.

"I thought it was very important for a long time," Trump said. "It seemed to me for a long time that that was a necessary step. We're a couple years since the passage of that now, but West Virginia was one of only maybe 10 or a dozen states that lacked an intermediate appellate court review. I have great confidence that the (ICA) is going help render fair and equal justice under the law for the citizens of the state well into the future."

Trump said his seeking of a seat on the state Supreme Court is in no way a sign of dissatisfaction with his fellow members of the West Virginia Senate, a body where even debates within the Republican 31-seat supermajority can spill out into public view. Trump is proud of his legislative service and honored to have represented the citizens of the 15th Senatorial District for more than 20 years. But he feels it is time to take his public service to the next level.

"If elected, I will work very hard to make sure that the citizens of West Virginia can be confident in justice and fair interpretations of the law, unbiased unprejudiced decision-making, and adherence to our United States and West Virginia constitutions, which are the safeguards for the liberty of the people."

Steven Allen Adams can be reached at sadams@newsandsentinel.com

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