Two more assistant Kanawha County prosecutors are leaving the office, Prosecuting Attorney Charles Miller said Tuesday.
John Hardison notified Miller on Tuesday he was going into private practice and that his last day would be in the first week of October.
Justin Criner is in the process of looking for another job, Miller said.
When Hardison and Criner leave the office, it will make 10 assistants who have left since former prosecuting attorney Mark Plants was removed from office last year.
Hardison has worked as a Kanawha assistant prosecutor since the fall of 2013. He primarily handled cases in magistrate court. He said Tuesday he plans to open his own law practice.
"It's always been a dream of mine to have my own practice. There's something to be said about being your own boss," Hardison said. "I definitely appreciate my time at the prosecutor's office. Anytime you can work in public service it's a tremendous honor. I was able to learn a lot, gain a lot of experience and help some people along the way and serve the people of the state of West Virginia."
Criner was hired in February. He previously worked as a Kanawha public defender.
Miller didn't want to say why Criner said he was leaving the office and Criner couldn't be reached for comment Tuesday. He had been primarily prosecuting domestic violence-related cases, Miller said.
"I'd rather not go into detail about a personnel issue," said Miller. "I can say John Hardison came to me this morning and told me he was leaving. He was certainly under no pressure to leave. He's done a fine job for me and I appreciate it."
Miller was appointed by Kanawha commissioners to replace Plants at the end of last year after a three-judge panel removed Plants from office. After some assistants left on their own and some were asked to leave, Miller had finally had a full staff after hiring two new assistants in June.
In July, assistant Joey Spano announced he was leaving to go into private practice after being with the office about five years.
Miller, a Republican, has already filed pre-candidacy papers with the county clerk's office to run in next year's election for a full term as prosecutor.
Assistants who have also left the office include: Plants' former chief of staff Dan Holstein, James Bailey, Erica Lord, Donnie Adkins, Ben Freeman, Matt Smith and Adam Campbell.
Reach Kate White at kate.white@wvgazette.com, 304-348-1723 or follow @KateLWhite on Twitter.