Clay County attorney Michael Wayne Asbury, Jr., took the oath of his new office as Judge in ceremonies in each of the four counties in the Fourteenth Judicial Circuit (Braxton, Clay, Gilmer and Webster Counties) last week.
Governor Jim Justice appointed Asbury, 48, to the bench in the Fourteenth Judicial Circuit to replace Judge Richard Facemire, who retired June 30.
Fellow Fourteenth Judicial Circuit Judge Jack Alsop delivered the oath of office at each event. The ceremonies began in Judge Asbury’s home county of Clay at 1 p.m. Wednesday, Sept. 13, in the Clay County Courthouse.
At 9 a.m. on Thursday, Sept. 14, in the Circuit Court Courtroom in the Braxton County Chief Judge Alsop administered Asbury his oath again. That ceremony was repeated, Sept. 14, in Gilmer and Webster Counties.
Judge Asbury is a native of Clay County, a 2002 graduate of West Virginia State University and a 2005 graduate of West Virginia University College of Law. He owns his own law practice in Clay County and has served clients throughout the area where he will now serve as a judge.
He has been married to his high school sweetheart, Carrie Asbury, for 28 years. They have four children and six grandchildren. The couple is active in Fairview Baptist Temple in Clay. Asbury is an outdoor enthusiast.