Governor's office releases findings of investigation into Boone County teen's death

Robert Fields | WVOW News

CHARLESTON Gov. Jim Justice's administration discussed its findings Thursday in the investigation into state responsibility in the life and recent death of a Boone County teenager.

Questions have been swirling since April 17, when 14-year-old Kyneddi Miller was found dead – “emaciated to a skeletal state” in her Morrisvale home. GPS coordinates from 2023 place a state police vehicle at Miller's home, then leaving the home and going directly to the Boone County Social Services office in Foster. State police call logs and audio from this incident suggest a trooper intended to “make a referral” to social services.

During Thursday's press conference, Governor Justice's chief of staff, Brian Abraham, confirmed that officers did indeed go to the social services office, conveying informal concern about the girl. According to Abraham, Miller would have been unusually worried about being exposed to COVID-19.

“In reality, they indicate that the girl signaled to him, to the officer, that she was afraid of COVID and that she didn't want to be around people because she was afraid of COVID. The officer thought it was strange for someone that age to have such a belief and he wanted to go to the department and at least let them know and see if anyone would call him and talk to him about it.

Abraham said the conversation between troopers and social services personnel was not formal and in no way raised a red flag that Miller's family situation should be investigated. According to Abraham, the troopers told him that, in addition to finding her fear of COVID strange, Miller seemed nourished and healthy.

Following the discovery of Miller's body in her home in April, her mother and grandparents were charged with child neglect resulting in death.

According to investigators, the girl had not attended public school since 2020 or late 2019 and had not been seen outside the home more than twice in the past four years.

Miller's family submitted homeschooling paperwork in February 2021, with doubts raised about whether the school system had any contact with Miller afterward. The Boone County school system, in response to recent reporter inquiries regarding Miller's homeschooling evaluations, said “no public record exists.”

Abraham pointed to a provision in West Virginia state code that requires home-schooled students to take standardized assessments at certain points in a child's education to gauge their progress. However, by law, the school system “may” take action against a child’s parents or guardians if these evaluations are not submitted, but no action is actually required. State Superintendent of Schools Michelle Blatt said Thursday that changes in that regard are decidedly necessary.

“Even though we know that many homeschooling parents are doing things the right way and taking care of their children and that this is the best choice for those families, I think our 7,000 children in the system are proof that not all parents do what is best for their children,” Blatt said.

“During the pandemic, our biggest concern was that we had not had oversight on some of these students for over a year, and currently, once a student – ​​even if an assessment had been provided – it could be an electronic assessment or submitted in the office. This does not mean that we would have seen this child or that the outcome would have been different. So I would like to strengthen the requirements so that there is an agency that, among all of us, if the assessment is not given, can have a way to get in touch with that family and see that child.

Gov. Justice, who did not appear at the news conference, described an ongoing internal investigation — in addition to the ongoing criminal investigation into Miller's death — and urged the public to let things play out. The hour and a half on Thursday devoted to answering questions was the culmination of this work. No written report was produced.

West Virginia Senate President Craig Blair released a statement following the press conference, saying it was clear the system of checks and balances had flaws, urging lawmakers to “improve our regulations relating to homeschooled children to ensure that no child suffers the same outcome.”

Watch the conference in full at the link below