Trending
WESTOVER - On Oct. 20, 2025, former Westover Police Chief Joe Adams announced his plans to retire after five years in the position.
On Monday - a day shy of exactly one year later - current Chief Scott Carl informed Westover City Council of his own pending retirement.
"Having vested in the Municipal Police Officers & Firefighters Retirement System and completed 38 years in law enforcement, including 33 years serving the citizens of Monongalia County, I have decided to retire and devote time to personal interests and future opportunities," he explained in a letter provided to members of council.
His final day with the department will be Dec. 4.
Carl has been with Westover since May 2021, when Adams brought him on as a second in command to help lead the reclamation of what city leaders admit was a troubled department fresh off a pair of high-profile incidents involving excessive force that resulted in lawsuits, and, ultimately, settlement payments.
Council credited Adams and Carl with turning the department around, and following Adams' retirement, voted unanimously on Nov. 3, 2025 to put Carl in the top spot.
"I would like to express my sincere gratitude for the opportunities and experiences I have enjoyed during my five and a half years as both Chief of Police and Deputy Chief of Police," Carl wrote. "Serving the City of Westover has been both professionally and personally rewarding. I greatly appreciate the support that the Mayor and City Council have provided to the police department."
Carl began his law enforcement career at 19 as a boarding officer in the U.S. Coast Guard. Following active duty, he returned to college and soon started a 26-year career with the Morgantown Police Department. He retired from MPD as a lieutenant in 2020 before answering Adams' call in 2021.
Carl encouraged the city to continue to support its police force by addressing salary adjustments in upcoming budgets as a primary means of retaining experienced officers and recruiting worthwhile candidates.
Carl said he intends to remain in the area and would be available to assist the department if needed.
"It has been an honor to serve this community, and I look forward to seeing both the city and the department continue to thrive in the years ahead."
In other Westover news, council approved a $48,187 bid from Blue Gold Development for repairs to the fishing pond in Westover City Park.
The project will address issues caused during the Father's Day 2025 flooding.
"The riser that drains the pond was put in back in the ’50s. That flood overwhelmed it and it collapsed, so the water started tearing out the hillside," Public Works Director Jason Stinespring said.
That water would end up running downhill, flooding the park's ballfields below.
"So, what they're going to do is they're going to put a new riser in. The riser, what that does is it controls the level of water. You put that riser where you want the flood level, and once the water hits that level, it runs into that and down under to drain. They're also going to put a drain in there that we can open if we need to drain the pond," Stinespring said.
Lastly, council approved the hiring of Adrienne Marean as the city's director of finance and Ellen Wentworth as billing clerk.