Former Magistrate Charged with Embezzlement

The state Judicial Investigation Commission found probable cause to charge former Kanawha County magistrate Julie Yeager with embezzlement. The Gazette Mail reports the charges were filed against Yeager Nov. 14 and made public Tuesday. The commission alleges Yeager said earlier this year that there was more than $23,000 in the West Virginia Magistrate Association’s account, when there was actually less than $800. Yeager was the group’s treasurer at the time. Yeager filed for bankruptcy in federal court in Charleston on Nov. 8. The Kanawha County Sheriff’s Dept. is conducting a criminal investigation.