Along the Way (Tim Haught the Mockingbird Song) Part 2
Tim Haught, Wetzel County Prosecutor explains that in the county he sees the three big crimes as domestic, sexual and substance abuse. He has witnessed some terrible cases of abuse within the county. He indicated parents have to be aware of the people who their children are around. He pointed out that in our state nearly two thirds of children are being raised by someone other than parents. This sometimes is a factor.
I have come to realize that Tim Haught is a complex person. He has a love for the common law and its being woven into America’s Constitution. Finding the foundation for a law that he will use in any case gives him a sense of right in the prosecution of the law or the defense. Both are equally important for his job. I also believe he would have been a great teacher of law. In that he could find common sense in the application of the law. But in the world of a rural county prosecutor, finding that common sense in the law is often difficult. I could since in our conversation that he is frustrated in the fact that many of the people he deals with have no concept of the law and why it was wrong in what they have committed. He finds too often that many of the people he prosecutes inherited the belief of not knowing what they have done is wrong. He has to feel compassion for the victim in the crime. But he also understands that in many cases the accused personally knows too often the crime in their own life. Drug, alcohol, sexual abuse, domestic violence, murder, suicide, murder and suicide together. How can you find answers in the law other than incarceration? It solves the problem at hand, but not the problems society has at large. “Ignorance of the law is no excuse; ignorance of the law is a dangerous thing.”
Tim for the last 23 years has dealt with the job of being our prosecutor. During those years he explained that his staff plays a big part in the accomplishment of this difficult task. Investigators, researchers for the law and history of the defendant must be done repeatedly. It is not uncommon for the prosecutor’s office to handle as many as thirty pre-trial or evidentiary hearings in a single day. Each must be prepared with orders and motions. No errors can be made that may result in a mistake.
West Virginia has only one certified lab that processes evidence in cases. If DNA is to be part of the evidence in a case, it must be sent to Charleston’s lab. Tim pointed out on television the evidence was processed and returned ASAP. In the real world it takes much longer, as much as six months. He also pointed out that he does not watch crime dramas on television. First half an hour they investigate, second, they prosecute. Lots of mistakes and not the way it happens. It is for entertainment only.
During our conversation we spoke of sitting behind the bench, Tim explained he has experience in that role in a courtroom. In Wetzel County he is the Mental Health Commissioner, fiduciary committee and he has spent twelve years on the Law Disciplinary Review Board.
Tim explained his office has processed more drug cases than any other in the circuit. When Tim began as prosecutor, drugs were a local issue. Today drug cartels out of Mexico and countries such as China are using drug cartels to send drugs into our county. In Columbus and Pittsburgh drug gangs bring their products to Wetzel County. Tim’s office has prosecuted members of those gangs and put them in prison. For every person convicted there are people who have become addicted to heroin and meth. The drugs are so addictive, it is nearly impossible for someone to kick the habit. Fentanyl coming into the country from China is killing thousands every year.
Tim is an avid fisherman primarily for trout. Unfortunately, his job and the distance from trout waters hinders his time in the streams. Each summer he travels out west to fish in the mountains of Wyoming and Montana. I asked, if he could have any fishing trip, what would be his choice. “Traveling out west for a summer and fishing.” I understand him to want time and no pressure. Just fishing.
Throughout our conversation Tim referred to the support of his family, especially his wife, Jill. A prosecutor’s job is not 40 hours a week in the daylight hours. Calls around the clock come into his life and that of his wife. His office prosecutes people who are not happy with Tim and even may say things about family. The constitution does not say anything about that.
Tim and Jill have two children, a son and daughter. Their son Eric C. Haught Esquire is working as an associate lawyer at the Fitzsimmons Law Firm in Wheeling. Their daughter, Anna C. Mason owns her own business here in town, Opal & Twine Designs.
Tim is nearing the place in his life and career where he has begun to think about the future. When I asked what the future held for Tim Haught. He responded by stating, “for 23 years I have worked as the prosecutor for Wetzel County. Soon I will reach my 65th birthday.” I sensed he is not sure if another term is in his future. He did however say, in retirement a person must reinvent themselves. He used that word with our community and its future, it must reinvent itself to solve the issues of today. Remaining sedimentary and not adapting will not improve things in the future. What does that mean for Tim, it tells me he still wants to make a difference in his life and the communities.
Tim and my association is mainly because we both are writers of words. Tim has a manuscript in the works and has written nearly 300 poems. I asked if his writing or fishing is an outlet for the pressures from his work. He smiled, and indicated the love within his family is his rock and foundation.
In to Kill a Mockingbird, the title refers to the loss of a song from the bird. In the life of Tim Haught, he too often sees the song of people quieted by abuse, drugs and violence. Much like Atticus Finch, he goes before the courts and hopes to bring justice to lost songs. I am proud to have Tim as a friend who isn’t afraid to speak his thoughts. And he is willing to listen to others as their voices pass Through the Lens.