Garry Cowderly. Ronzel Dornon. Darrel Boyce. John Nestor. Tracy Thompson. Cindy Ball. These are some of the names of unsolved murder victims in the Mid Ohio Valley. Then you have suspicious deaths like that of Jaleayah Davis.

I appeared before Parkersburg City Council in what was actually the last council meeting that Bob Newell presided over as mayor and asked City Council and then-mayor Newell to consider creating a cold case unit in the Parkersburg Police Department. Cold case units in police departments across the U.S. have become very successful at solving unsolved murders.

Nothing has been done with my suggestion to my knowledge! It seems the leadership of local law enforcement can’t get their heads out of the clouds. All they want to talk about is the drug problem. We do have a crisis on our hands with the drug problem and it should be addressed, but it should NEVER take priority over the unsolved murders in the area. The drug dealers are not intentionally trying to kill their customers.

It is my hope that whoever becomes the next mayor of Parkersburg, that they will make it their No.1 priority to see to it that the Parkersburg Police Department does whatever they have to do, to get all of the unsolved murders that have occurred in Parkersburg solved. The families and friends of the victims deserve justice. I also hope that the citizens of Parkersburg will look at the track records of anyone who is running for the office of mayor before they vote.

I would like to remind everyone that Tom Joyce was the lone Republican member of City Council who voted for the Parkersburg User Fee when it was enacted. I remember Joyce coming out in the local media saying that “I get it” when it came to the citizens who were against the user fee being enacted. Joyce didn’t get it then and he most certainly hasn’t got it now. It is my hope that a “viable” candidate or someone else will file to run for mayor. We don’t need someone who has served office before that has a track record of doing nothing or not enough to better the city. The citizens of Parkersburg deserve someone who will give the job their all and then some.

Joe Backus

Parkersburg