CHARLESTON, W.Va. — A new Kanawha County magistrate is joining the ranks following 25 years of law experience.
Kanawha County Chief Judge Kenneth Ballard recently appointed longtime employee of the Kanawha County Sheriff’s Office Harry Carpenter to the magistrate position for Division 8.
Carpenter came on 580 Live following the appointment. He said this comes after Magistrate Jack Pauley’s retirement a couple of weeks ago, and while this was a procedural measure which Judge Ballard had to conduct, he’s thankful he saw something in him to fulfill the role. 
“Judge Ballard, I’ve known him for a number of years, straight up guy, and he went through the process, took applications, reviewed them, did interviews, and I was fortunate enough to get the nod,” Carpenter said on 580 Live.
“I am confident that Harry will serve the people of Kanawha County with fairness, compassion, and distinction,” Ballard said in a statement.
Carpenter said based on his 25 years of prior experience in law, with 12 of those years serving as Chief of Home Confinement for the Kanawha County Sheriff’s Office, he believes that made him the ideal candidate for the magistrate position.
He said he spent virtually everyday in the judicial building working with magistrates, circuit judges, defense attorneys and prosecutors, and he’s seen the function of the magistrate position first-hand.
“It’s not like I’m going in with my eyes wide-shut, you know, so I’m sure the transition will be very smooth, and I’m fairly confident that’s what Judge Ballard saw,” he said.
After spending those years in law enforcement in the county, Carpenter said he’s well-aware of the issues the area faces, as the majority of crimes committed within the county most always goes back to drugs.
However, he said, fortunately, Kanawha County has taken the needed steps over the years to alleviate that problem some through programs like the adult drug court that Judge Jennifer Bailey operates.
“It has been very successful over the last number of years, and they have a juvenile drug court, the day-report program, so the court is being progressive about trying to help people that want and need help,” he said.
Carpenter said he had been a big proponent of the drug court, at one time serving as one of the original board members for the program.
He said while he’s not involved with the program anymore, he glad to see it still continuing.
“You know, we had some speed bumps and tripped a little bit, but the people that were involved with stayed true to it and didn’t give up,” he said.
The drug court has also been a noted success in other counties in the state as well.
Carpenter said he still hopes to be another component in helping to fight the drug epidemic across the county through his new role as magistrate.
He said he’s now in magistrate training with other new magistrates before he can officially assume the role.