Elkins pauses police payroll deduction plan

Charges against Tucker Commissioners influenced decision

ELKINS – The City of Elkins has paused its first responder payroll deduction initiative programs after all three Tucker County Commissioners were charged for allegedly misusing funds in a similar program.

Elkins Mayor Jerry Marco confirmed with The Inter-Mountain that the City of Elkins has offered a program through which the City’s first responders could take a payroll deduction to help pay for items, including, in the case of police officers, their service weapon or personal weapon.

Marco said this program had been in place for some time with the City’s law enforcement or first responders, but given the recent arraignment of the Tucker County Commissioners on misdemeanor charges for alleged misuse of such funds, similar programs are now in question across the state.

“It recently came up into question, and I think it’s because of what happened (in Tucker County),” Marco told The Inter-Mountain. “So (the state Auditor’s Office) said ‘Hey, put that on hold for a minute…’ I think they’re still trying to get it ironed out, so we just put ours (program) on hold right now.”

Marco said that other municipalities throughout the state have also had to put their programs on hold and that the state Auditor’s Office is trying to determine the best way to go forward, with a possible revamp in the works.

The Inter-Mountain reached out to the office of West Virginia State Auditor Mark A. Hunt for comment, but did not receive a response by press time.

On Aug. 6, Tucker County Commission President Michael William Rosenau, Commissioner Frederick J. Davis Jr., and Commissioner Timothy Paul Knotts were each charged with one count of unauthorized expenditure by a local official, a misdemeanor. All three Tucker County commissioners entered not guilty pleas to misdemeanor charges in Tucker County Circuit Court on Aug. 18.

According to the Tucker County Circuit Court documents provided to The Inter-Mountain by Preston County Prosecutor James Shay Jr., who has been assigned the special prosecutor for all three cases, on May 8, 2019, the Tucker County Commission unanimously approved a new program called the Sheriff's Incentive Program, which allows "Sheriff's deputies to purchase items that are consistent with law enforcement."

On Oct. 15, 2020, March 30, 2022, Oct. 30, 2023, Nov. 14, 2024 and Aug. 12, 2025, Davis allegedly used this initiative program to purchase "personal property items, mostly firearms, ammunition and other weapons, such as most recently a crossbow for his own personal use," the documents state. Davis' payroll records allegedly show the periods of time when his wages were attached to cover the expenses. Davis reportedly paid the amounts he "borrowed" back to the Tucker County Budget through wage attachment, but the payments were allegedly made over at least a year later, with no interest paid.

On Aug. 12, 2025, a check in the amount of $3,990.75 was written out of the Tucker County General Fund, the documents state. The check was made out to Backbone Mountain Sports Center & Pawn LLC in Oakland, Maryland for the purchase of a crossbow and ammunition. The purchase was allegedly made for Davis’ personal benefit and the check was signed by Rosenau, Tucker County Sheriff Jacob Kopec and the former Tucker County Clerk Sherry Simmons.

On Aug. 13, 2025, the Tucker County Commission held a meeting and all three members voted unanimously to approve expenses, including the check for $3,990.75, the documents state. Knotts made the motion for the vote. The check was funded through Line Item 402-459, which is said to be the County Commission’s personal “capital outlay.”