State v. Nicholson

NEELY, Chief Justice:

The appellant, Robert Nicholson, was convicted of welfare fraud under W.Va. Code 9-5-4 [1972], He maintains that he did not waive his right to counsel and therefore a statement he gave to a Department of Human Services employee and a West Virginia state trooper should not have been admitted at his trial. Although this Court holds that the appellant’s waiver and statement were properly admitted by the trial court, we remand this case for sentencing.

In June of 1981, Miss Frances Lantz, an investigator with the Jefferson County Department of Human Services was asked by the…