BERKELEY SPRINGS, W.Va. — A Great Cacapon man pleaded not guilty to charges stemming from what police called the ambush-style slaying of three men last June.
Erick Shute,32, was charged with three counts of murder in the deaths of Jack Douglas, 49, of Great Cacapon, and Hedgesville father and son Willie Bartley, 49, and Travis Bartley, 24.
Shute allegedly shot the men on June 13 with an AR-15 assault-style rifle.
At the time of the shootings, Morgan County Sheriff Vince Shambaugh said that Shute was preparing “for the end of times” when he hid behind an oak tree and shot the victims.
The Herald Mail reports a witness who called 911 to report the shootings had walked away before the the incident took place and told police that Shute was about 25 yards from the victims when he fired from behind the tree.
Court records show the victims were working for the owner of the property next door to Shute’s on the day of the shootings, and had been arguing over a trespassing dispute near Gamble Road on Sideling Hill Mountain.
A court-appointed defense attorney, speaking for his client, waived Shute’s right to a speedy trail and agreed to have it continued to the April term of court.
Shute is being held without bond at Eastern Regional Jail near Martinsburg, W.Va.
A status hearing in the case is scheduled for April 11 and a pretrial hearing for June 21.