BERKELEY SPRINGS, W.Va. — A Morgan County Sheriff’s Deputy is recovering after being shot Saturday morning.
Sheriff Johnnie Walter tells MetroNews deputies were called around 7 a.m. to a domestic in the Spohrs Crossroads area east of Berkeley Springs.
A man, later identified as Melvin Gallion, 40, was reportedly pounding on the door before eventually kicking it in.
Sheriff Walter says Gallion was already in the house when the deputies pulled up, but he believes it distracted Gallion enough to give the woman and child inside time to run out of the back of the house.
Gallion began shooting out of a bedroom window using a 12-gauge shotgun loaded with bird shot, then went to the front door of the house and started shooting at deputies.
Deputy Bradley Mechem was shot four times, once above his eye and three times in his left hand.
The Morgan Messenger first broke the story, adding that Deputy Mechem stayed and engaged the subject after being shot, according to Sheriff Walter.
Sheriff Walter tells MetroNews “the deputies returned fire and hit the subject. He dropped his weapon. He was hit in the wrist.” Gallion was taken to get medical treatment but had already been released to the Eastern Regional Jail and charged with two counts of attempted murder on a law enforcement officer. Sheriff Walter says other charges are pending.
Deputy Mechem was treated at War Memorial Hospital and released, but Sheriff Walter says his deputy will need to have the pellets removed next week.
He and the other responding Morgan County Sheriff’s Deputy M. Butts, will also be off work for a while so they can process what happened. Before opening fire on the deputies, Gallion allegedly shot two dogs to death, one of those being shot in front of the child.
The incident is being investigated by the West Virginia State Police, who processed the inside of the house after the shooting incident.
Sheriff Walter said his deputies responded, “by the book,” and he believes their appearance on scene saved the lives of the woman and child inside. “The actions they took saved their lives, as well.”
Two cruisers were also damaged in the incident.
Sheriff Walter spoke to MetroNews via phone from Paw Paw, where deputies were called to investigate a suspicious backpack that had been left outside the American Legion building. “A Jeep pulled up with the backpack belted in to the seat, the person placed it and took a picture of it before driving off.” He said a bomb technician was due to arrive on scene to investigate the bag, which he said had wires coming out of it.
“It’s been quite a day in Morgan County,” Sheriff Walter said. That backpack was eventually cleared as containing only an electric blanket.
Sheriff Walter says Gallion was jailed in lieu of a $300,000 bond on the attempted murder charges and a $50,000 bond for the malicious wounding charge. He was also wanted for a parole violation out of Berkeley County and will be held without bond on that charge. “So he’s not getting out of jail anytime soon,” according to Sheriff Walter.
You can hear Sheriff Walter’s interview on the Panhandle News Network Spotify page.
Edit: This story has been updated to reflect the charges/bond information and the resolution of the suspicious backpack incident from Paw Paw Saturday.