Charleston, WV – The Honorable Judge Derek Swope of the Ninth Judicial Circuit presided over the trial in the Historic Courtroom 4, located at the Kanawha County Courthouse, which started on April 4^th and continued for 35 days. The trial was resolved due to the tenacious perseverance of Judge Swope. The Kanawha County Commission hosted the Judge, his staff, the Attorney General, and the litigants in the Historic Courtroom for the trial.

“I would like to thank Judge Swope and his staff for their hard work on this case. They were here for almost two months listening to testimony and reviewing evidence. The settlement in the case will help Kanawha Countians and West Virginians in the fight against the opioid battle,” stated Commissioner Ben Salango.

Commission President Kent Carper commented, “This is great news for Kanawha County as this is one step toward moving forward in fighting the opioid crisis. All of the litigants, the Attorney General’s Office, and Judge Swope were good stewards of the Courthouse, and we appreciate their kindness to our staff as they used Courtroom 4 for the trial.”

“I would like to thank Attorney General Patrick Morrisey for his work to make this settlement happen. To help stop the opioid crisis, we must take on the manufacturers, which is exactly what Attorney General Morrisey is doing. Kanawha County will benefit from this settlement, and we will work to see how we can use it to take care of our citizens,” stated Commission Lance Wheeler.