Man charged after allegedly making racial threats to family in Monongalia County

MORGANTOWN, W.Va. (WBOY) — A Morgantown resident was charged with violating his neighbors’ civil rights after allegedly making racial threats at multiple victims, including children, over the course of several months.

On July 14, troopers with the Monongalia County detachment of the West Virginia State Police responded to a residence on Majestic Drive in Morgantown for a report of a hate crime, according to a criminal complaint.

When troopers arrived, they spoke with one of the victims and a witness to multiple incidents where James Hamlin, 48, of Morgantown, was accused of yelling racial slurs at victims on multiple occasions between December 2023 and April 2024, troopers said.

According to the complainants, on Dec. 7, 2023, a juvenile victim and two others were in a vehicle on Majestic Drive when Hamlin “jumped in front” of the vehicle and “began yelling at the victim, saying ‘You don’t belong on my mountain, n*****’,” according to the complaint. Due to this incident, the juvenile victim “did not want to go to school because he was afraid,” troopers said.

Around that time, Hamlin also sent text messages to an adult victim, telling “him to get off his mountain and called him a ‘monkey’,” troopers said.

In January 2024, when that victim would leave for work, Hamlin would taunt him using racial slurs and tell the victim he had no business on “his mountain,” according to the complaint.

On April 26, multiple children were at the victims’ home and went outside to play football; Hamlin “came outside and began yelling at the kids, ‘I am the goddamn devil, and all you n***** need to get off my motherf***ing mountain’,” according to the complaint.

For these reasons, the victims “are fearful and afraid” and “won’t go outside,” according to the complaint.

Hamlin has been charged with prohibiting violations of an individual’s civil rights. He is being held in North Central Regional Jail on $111,000 bond.

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