James Barber
CHARLESTON — A longtime Charleston attorney has been arrested on a fugitive from justice warrant after allegedly exposing himself to a child last year in Virginia.
James Barber, 65, was arrested July 29 at his Charleston office. He is charged with exposing sexual genital parts to a child under the age of 15. Chesterfield County Police in Virginia began its investigation in the matter last July.
According to authorities, Barber solicited sex and exchanged inappropriate and sexual images and videos with a juvenile girl. Officials say Barber did this over the course of several months.
Kanawha County Prosecuting Attorney Debra Rusnak confirmed a local investigation has begun as well.
“We were notified by authorities in Virginia,” Rusnak told The West Virginia Record. “Steps were taken to safely apprehend him, and we did seize several items. We do have an ongoing investigation here.”
Rusnak said Barber was charged in Virginia for possession of child pornography, exchanging inappropriate images with a minor under 15 and solicitation of a minor under 15 in addition to others for a total of 24 charges. He is being held at South Central Regional Jail with no bond pending an extradition hearing that has yet to be scheduled.
“They did a pretty significant investigation on their end,” Rusnak said of the Chesterfield Police probe. “Obviously, they had enough evidence to get warrants.
““Once we complete the investigation, we would certainly make a decision as to whether or not the evidence obtained through the investigation warrants charges here.”
Barber has been a personal injury attorney since 1984 and formerly worked for Hartley Law Group in Charleston. His information has been removed from the firm’s website, and he is listed as inactive on the West Virginia State Bar website.
He graduated from the West Virginia University College of Law and has been involved in youth and high school soccer for years.
