CHARLESTON, W.Va. — A lawyer with the state Attorney General’s Office was arrested following a Monday morning shooting in the South Hills neighborhood of Charleston.
Police said multiple shots were fired from a residence at 105 Cornwall Lane owned by attorney Mark Bramble.
As a standoff developed, a negotiator was brought to the scene along with a SWAT team. The situation ended just before noon, when Bramble was arrested and taken to a Charleston hospital. Bramble was injured, though it was unclear if his wounds were self-inflicted or came from police.
Charleston investigators were expected to release more information about the shooting later Monday.
Bramble was hired in 2012 as an assistant attorney general in the state Attorney General’s Office. Sources said he submitted his letter of resignation last week effective Aug. 30.
Charleston resident Jerry Lacy, who lives down the street from Bramble’s house, told MetroNews he heard shots ring out Monday morning and then saw police arrive.
“I believe it’s domestic because the man’s wife, girlfriend, whatever came running down the street,” Lacy said. “They placed her in an ambulance. They took her away and then brought her back.”
Lacy reported hearing a second round of shooting, which sounded “like an AK-47 or a machine gun-type weapon.”
Things turned quiet on the scene at about 10:30 a.m., and Kanawha County Emergency Management reported the suspect was in custody by 11:50 a.m.
“The neighborhood here is a real nice neighborhood,” Lacy said. “The particular house that it is is a $700,000 or an $800,000 house for sale. It’s pretty odd for this neighborhood. We’ve never seen anything like it.”
Kanawha County Metro 911 originally relayed a message from police asking residents in the area to stay inside their homes. Dispatchers confirmed it was not a hostage situation.
West Virginia Attorney General Patrick Morrisey released the following statement Monday afternoon:
“I am deeply saddened by the reports about one of the attorneys in the Workers Compensation Division of the Attorney General’s Office allegedly being involved in a shooting incident in Charleston earlier today.
“Mr. Bramble was hired by the Attorney General’s Office on June 1, 2012. On August 8, 2013, he turned in notice of his resignation as a lawyer, which was slated to go into effect on August 30.
“We are relieved that no one in his family or neighborhood was injured and that all members of the law enforcement community are safe.
“As you know, details about this incident are still murky, and police are in the process of conducting a thorough investigation. We will have no further comment at this time.”