McDowell County joins new task force targeting crimes against children

McDowell County now has a specialized regional partner for some of its most sensitive cases: a new Crimes Against Children Task Force built with the Wyoming County Sheriff's Office to investigate child victimization and exploitation across county lines.

The joint unit, announced Thursday, June 4, 2026, was shaped over several months by Wyoming County Sheriff Brad Ellison, Sgt. Tyler Sizemore, McDowell County Sheriff James Muncy and Deputy Brent Cline. Sizemore and Cline are expected to run the task force, which officials said will focus on human trafficking involving minors, child exploitation, child sexual abuse material, internet crimes against children and other offenses that threaten children’s safety.

For families in Welch, Pineville and the smaller communities spread across southern West Virginia, the practical change is a more coordinated response when a case stretches beyond one courthouse door or one county line. The task force is meant to give investigators a clearer path to share resources, move faster on digital evidence and use more specialized training instead of relying on informal cooperation after a complaint comes in.

Officials also tied the new unit to victim services. The task force will work with Stop The Hurt Child Advocacy Center, the West Virginia Department of Human Services and other community resources so children and families can be met with a more coordinated, trauma-informed response. Stop The Hurt, Inc. says it operates child-friendly facilities in Welch and Pineville and serves families in both McDowell and Wyoming counties.

The broader need is not hard to see in the state data. West Virginia has 21 child advocacy centers serving 48 of 55 counties, and those centers supported 4,734 children in fiscal year 2025. They conducted 4,603 forensic interviews and saw 833 cases in which criminal charges were filed. Of the children served, 46% were referred for alleged sexual abuse, 17% for alleged drug endangerment, 67% were under age 12 and 96% of alleged offenders were someone the child knew.

McDowell County’s shrinking population adds another layer of urgency. The county had 19,111 residents in the 2020 census and an estimated 16,878 in 2025, while neighboring Wyoming County had 21,382 in 2020. James Muncy is listed by the West Virginia Secretary of State as McDowell County sheriff, and Ellison was sworn in as Wyoming County sheriff on Dec. 29, 2020, underscoring that the new unit is being built by long-established local law enforcement.

The announcement did not provide staffing totals, a budget or a case count, but it did mark a shift toward a more permanent investigative structure for crimes that are often complex, time-consuming and deeply damaging to children and their families.