MERCER COUNTY W.Va. (WVDN) – Phillip B. Ball, a 60-year-old former Mercer County attorney, was sentenced on Wednesday, Oct. 30, for felony embezzlement. The conviction stems from the illegal transfer of over $73,000 from a deceased individual’s estate in 2015.
Ball was indicted by a Mercer County Grand Jury in October 2023 and subsequently convicted on Aug. 6. Mercer County Circuit Court Special Judge Andrew Dimlich sentenced Ball to 1-10 years in prison but suspended the sentence and placed Ball on two years of supervised probation.
The embezzled funds were transferred from an estate being administered by the Mercer County Sheriff’s Department, where Ball was serving as the department’s attorney. The illegal transfer was discovered in 2020, leading to investigations by both federal and state authorities.
In July 2023, the State of West Virginia annulled Ball’s law license. The West Virginia State Police, at the request of Mercer County Prosecuting Attorney Brian K. Cochran, initiated a criminal investigation, resulting in Ball’s indictment and subsequent conviction.
Cochran expressed gratitude to the West Virginia State Police, FBI, United States Attorney’s Office, and the West Virginia Office of Disciplinary Counsel for their contributions to the investigation and prosecution.
