PRINCETON, W.Va. — A State Police trooper shot and killed a man late Thursday night who had just minutes earlier allegedly been in his driveway tampering with his personal vehicle and cruiser.
State Police detailed the Thursday night shooting in the Kegley area of Mercer County in a Friday morning news release.
Senior Trooper B.D. Gillespie, who is stationed at the Welch detachment, was sleeping when his wife began screaming that three men were in their driveway around their vehicles. Gillespie put on his uniform, got in his cruiser and began looking for them.
The new release said the trooper found the men about a quarter-mile from his house and began questioning the group. A short time later one of the men, identified as Timothy Hill, became “belligerent and refused to comply with lawful commands made in the interest of safety which included placing his hands behind his back for officer safety.”
The two other men then took off as Trooper Gillespie tried to arrest Hill on an obstruction charge. The news release said Hill’s combativeness increased and he began fighting with the trooper.
Gillespie sprayed Hill with pepper spray during the fight and hit him with a closed baton. Both of the men fell to the ground and Hill got on top of Trooper Gillespie. State Police said a neighbor witnessed the fight and came to help the trooper and all three men rolled into a deep ditch.
The news release said Hill tried to disarm Trooper Gillespie and then Gillespie got control of the gun and shot Hill twice. He was pronounced dead at the scene.
An investigation into the deadly shooting is underway.