MORGANTOWN — Lydia C. Milnes, deputy director of the legal advocacy nonprofit Mountain State Justice, told The Dominion Post nobody at the organization has advised clients to break the law.
Her comments come days after footage of Morgantown Police Officer Matt Starsick’s Oct. 23, 2024 interaction with Anthony Rowand showed up on a Morgantown Facebook group page.
Rowand is the named plaintiff in a class action First Amendment lawsuit brought against the city by Mountain State Justice in April 2024.
In the video, Starsick writes Rowand a disorderly conduct citation for being in the road at the intersection of U.S. 119 (Grafton Road) and 4-H Camp Road.
Rowand tells Starsick he’s been waiting to receive a citation.
When questioned further, Rowand explains “My lawyer said I’ve got to get a couple of them.”
His lawyer, he later confirms, is Lesley Nash with Mountain State Justice.
When asked if he and Nash are conspiring to break the law, Rowand said, “No, she just doesn’t think it’s right for you guys to be targeting us.”
The Dominion Post reached out to MSJ about the video.
“We can’t disclose attorney, client privileged conversations, but what I can say is that neither Lesley nor anyone at Mountain State Justice has ever directed a client to engage in unlawful activity,” Milnes said. “We have provided advice to clients about what is lawful, what is unlawful and what we think is going on. I don’t know why Mr. Rowand phrased things the way he did, but we have not directed a client to engage in unlawful activity.”
A little over a month after MSJ filed suit against the city, Morgantown City Council repealed its panhandling ordinance prohibiting solicitation of persons traveling in vehicles on public rights of way.
Even so, Milnes said, the city continues to target panhandling.
“What we saw was the Morgantown police officers began issuing tickets for the same conduct using other means. So, instead of ticketing specifically for panhandling, they’re ticketing for crossing a roadway outside of a crosswalk, or disorderly conduct,” she said. “Our concern is that this is basically pretextual; the use of other ordinances in order to continue to prevent people from engaging in constitutionally protected speech.”
She also noted the city’s disorderly conduct code exempts constitutionally protected activities from falling under the law.
In the video, Starsick tells Rowand the issue is not with panhandling, but the fact that he’s standing in the roadway.
“I would target anybody who’s standing out in the middle of a five-lane intersection for any reason,” Starsick said, later adding, “If you want to go over there to the side of the road, or to that side of the road, I don’t care. You’re off of the road.”
Starsick later walks Rowand to the shoulder.
“I know you don’t make the money over here, but man, I’d rather you make a little bit less and be safer, Ok?” he says before leaving.
Starsick urges Rowand to question whether his attorney would care if he was struck by a vehicle and insinuates “a fu**ing payday” may be the real motive.
Milnes said that is not the case.
“I know there’s a sort of allegation that Lesley or MSJ is in it for the money or something. We’re a nonprofit. Our attorneys are not paid based on what cases they bring or what recovery they get in a case or anything like that,” she said. “I think that’s completely unfounded.”
As for Rowand’s lawsuit, filings indicate the parties are directed to provide the details of a proposed settlement to the court on or before Feb. 21.
The Dominion Post reached out to the moderator of the Facebook group to ask who submitted the video but did not receive a response in time for this report.
The city confirmed that three individuals submitted requests for bodycam footage – Nash, Mike Nolting with WAJR and Todd Stainbrook.
