Marly Ynigues, 5th Ward
marlyformorgantown@gmail.com
Q1. There have been proposals put forward to create a Civilian Review Board for the Morgantown City Police. Please share your thoughts on this ordinance, or a civilian police review board in Morgantown.
The Civilian Police Review and Advisory Board helps with transparency and supports Morgantown as a modern police department. It will give the City new tools for transparency and a responsibility to collect data so we can see if there are any patterns that need to be addressed at the department level. It provides a way to review misconduct claims as well as best practices in policing, see what’s being done in other departments, so we can say, “We need this training. We need this resource for our community.”
The City committed to this system for public trust and police accountability in our Strategic Plan. We’ve since had nearly a year’s worth of public input; it’s time to make good on our commitment.
Q2. In the past year, the city has been engaged in conversations about housing insecurity and houselessness, especially in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic. How would you like to see the city address houselessness in Morgantown?
For folx living in Morgantown unsheltered, we have to start by making sure local Housing First programs are adequately funded. Housing First works by securing safe housing, subsidizing payments for a period of transition, and providing a case worker who can help connect newly housed residents with services for healthcare, employment, and the like.
When adequately funded, these programs are successful in a number of ways.
• HOUSING STABILITY: In Colorado, Housing First services resulted in 96% rate of home retention.
• PUBLIC HEALTH AND SAFETY: In Charlotte, NC, Housing First reduced ER visits by 81% and petty crime arrests by 80%.
• PROGRAM SUSTAINABILITY: In Salt Lake City, UT: Housing First reduced the city's costs by 60%, from $20,000 per houseless person per year down to $8,000 per newly housed person per year.
Regarding housing insecurity in general, we can create more substantial policies to encourage accessory dwelling units for greater housing availability. On a larger scale, we could look to attract nonprofit development groups and housing lenders like those currently thriving in counties such as Tucker, Randolph, and Barbour.
Q3. People experiencing houselessness sometimes set up encampments on personal or public property. These can provide a community and stability but have also created concerns about safety and sanitation. How do you think Morgantown should approach encampments like these?
We need greater community input, including from people who are houseless in Morgantown. Like many, I was shocked when the City dismantled Diamond Village, with little advance notice, against the CDC’s guidance not to displace anybody during the pandemic. Living as a community provides some public health resources, such as having neighbors nearby who can administer naloxone to somebody who has overdosed. As I understood it at the time, the City had been looking into providing sanitary resources because of the pandemic, such as portable sinks and bathrooms. Because the City is not providing this baseline of resources, I would support an alternative system such as group housing, to provide the protection of community as well as basic sanitary resources and safety from the elements (with the option for people to find their own housing through Housing First programming).
Q4. The Center for Disease Control advocates for needs-based syringe programs (providing access to the number of syringes needed “to ensure that a new, sterile syringe is available for each injection” with no restrictions including returning used syringes) as the best practice to reduce new HIV and viral hepatitis infections. These evidence-based programs that follow suggested best practices have been controversial in West Virginia and under attack at both the state and local level. If elected to city council how would you view syringe distribution programs?
I support harm reduction and public health. This is not theoretical; providing clean syringes is supported by data. As Lauren Peace reported in Mountain State Spotlight,
“Science has shown that syringe access programs, commonly called needle exchanges, prevent the spread of infectious diseases like Hepatitis C and HIV, can reduce the amount of syringe litter in a community and do not increase drug use. Needs-based programs, or those with low barriers to entry, such as not requiring people to bring a needle back to get another one, have been shown to be the most effective at preventing the spread of disease.”
Unfortunately, after Kanawha County rolled back its syringe program, Charleston became the national epicenter of HIV outbreaks. As I stated at the City Council Candidate forum, we don’t want such an outbreak to happen here – and it’s “avoidable” (relevant question starting at 4:45).
Q5. In 2017, Morgantown passed a Non-Discrimination Ordinance to include protections “against discrimination in employment, housing, and public accommodations on account of actual or perceived race, religion, color, national origin, ancestry, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, disability, familial status, or veteran status.” Do you support that NDO? Why or why not?
Everybody has a human right to housing, public accommodations, and employment regardless of these broad categories. I’ve supported nondiscrimination in my personal and professional life: I was a signing witness for a same-gender wedding in West Virginia in late 2014, after it had been legalized in the state but before it had been legalized nationwide. I also brought forward non-discrimination on the basis of gender identity to my employer several years ago, and it was integrated into corporate policy.
Q6. In 2020, the Morgantown City Council passed a cannabis decriminalization ordinance, lowering the misdemeanor crime of possession of less than 15 grams in city limits to a $15 fine and no jail time. What are your views on cannabis and decriminalization of drugs for personal use?
I was in the WV Capitol on the day in February 2017 (it was Randolph County Day on the Hill, and I was a Candidate for Elkins City Council) when they voted to legalized cannabis for medical use. Unfortunately, it was amended and watered down, even to the point where politicians were naming specific conditions for which doctors could prescribe the medication. The practice of medicine should be left to medical professionals. I’m in favor of decriminalizing cannabis for full medical and personal use.
Q7. This year, a resolution was passed in support of the Crown Act and council members have spoken about their commitment to put this into law in the form of a municipal ordinance. Will you support this effort to prevent discrimination on the basis of traits commonly associated with race like hair texture and protective hair styles? Why or why not?
Absolutely. Natural hair non-discrimination, like color non-discrimination, is key to anti-racism. As an active member of the Morgantown/Kingwood Branch of the NAACP, I publicly advocated this resolution and ordinance.
Q8. Many WV municipalities have passed ordinances allowing cities to force abatement measures on ‘nuisance properties’ where there are multiple instances of suspected crimes. Proponents say this can help crack down on drug activity and predatory landlords. Opponents say this can create due process concerns and discourage calls to the police when help is needed. What is your opinion of these ‘drug house’ ordinances?
Nobody should lose their home over suspected crimes. This is a harmful policy that makes people weigh the risk of losing their home against, for example, reporting domestic violence. If the bar for eviction is a few calls over “suspected” crimes, a bigoted neighbor or landlord could call in fake reports. Everybody has a right to their day in court.