WEST VIRGINIA
Bluefield Daily Telegraph
By GREG JORDAN Bluefield Daily Telegraph
PRINCETON — A circuit court jury heard opening statements and witnesses’ testimony Tuesday in the trial of a Mercer County man who allegedly used claims of magical power to get close to children and sexually abuse them.
James Rolan “Jim” Irvin, 57, of Bluefield is being tried before Circuit Court Judge William Sadler multiple charges of sexual assault first degree, sexual abuse first degree, and sexual abuse by a parent or guardian.
Irvin was arrested in April after an investigation by the Bluefield Police Department indicated that Irvin told children he had magical power so he could sexually abuse them. Detectives said Irvin told his victims that he was a “warlock” that practiced paganism and Wicca.
The court spent most of Tuesday morning and the early afternoon selecting a 12-member jury and two alternate jurors. After the jury was seated, Chief Assistant Prosecuting Attorney George Sitler showed the jury a chart that described how Irvin knew the three alleged victims in the case. The girls were approximately 3, 9 and 13 years old when the abuse occurred.
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