BECKLEY, WV (WOAY) – A local attorney has announced that she will be seeking election as a Raleigh County Circuit Court judge.
Marie Bechtel has practiced law for 21 years and is now throwing her hat in the ring for the 2024 election.
“My practice has been widely varying from primarily focusing on business law to serving as a judicial law clerk to working with individuals in recovery from substance use disorder and really focusing on children and their needs as they have to go through the court system in one form or another,” she said.
Bechtel was born and raised in Beckley and graduated from Woodrow Wilson High School. After completing her bachelor’s degree at WVU, Bechtel pursued her legal studies and graduated from the WVU College of Law in 2002.
Bechtel began her legal career in Wheeling, where she served as a clerk before moving to private practice, focusing primarily on business law.
In 2010, Bechtel and her family returned home to Beckley, where she became an active member of the Raleigh County bar.
She is currently the supervisor of the local office of a non-profit law firm, in addition to her private practice.
In her private practice, she has represented many children while serving as a guardian ad litum and mediator.
Bechtel’s range of legal experience has given her a unique perspective on the needs of many who appear before the court.
“The individuals who are primarily appearing before the court are victims of the substance use disorder epidemic. I have extensive experience with both the individuals who suffer from substance use disorder and the children who are the true victims of that epidemic, and I believe that experience really makes me particularly well-suited to serving as a circuit court judge in Raleigh County,” she said.
