CHARLESTON, W.Va. –A Kanawha County teenager charged with killing four family members has been transferred to the South Central Regional Jail.
Kanawha County Circuit Judge Kenneth Ballard ordered the move of Gavin Smith during a Wednesday morning court hearing following a motion from prosecutors. Smith was at the jail by Wednesday afternoon.
Smith, of Elkview, had been held at the Tiger Morton juvenile facility. He’s now 18.
Ballard transferred Smith’s case to adult status in March after his December 2020 arrest on 4 counts of murder.
He’s charged with shooting and killing family members Daniel Dale Long, 37, Risa Mae Saunders, 39, Gage Ripley, 12, and Jameson Long, 3, in their Elkview area home.
Smith has yet to be indicted on the charges.
Smith’s attorneys asked Ballard Wednesday to allow their client to stay in juvenile custody to finish high school classes. The request was denied.
A co-defendant in the case, Rebecca Walker, also been convicted on accessory charges and sentenced to 10 years in prison.