Deputies shoot, kill man armed with AK-47 Published: July 04, 2006 10:39 pm
Police say officers fired at man in self defense. Two Raleigh County Sheriff's Deputies shot and killed a Cabell Heights man early Tuesday morning, citing self-defense, according to a news release from Chief Deputy Steve Tanner. Tanner indicated that the two deputies, who were not identified, were responding to a complaint made by neighbors that Robert Webb, 44, was firing a gun in the neighborhood. When the officers arrived at the scene they found Webb armed with an AK-47 assault rifle.Tanner said the deputies identified themselves and told Webb to put down his weapon, but when Webb responded by placing the rifle on his shoulder and aiming it at the officers, they fired simultaneously in defense. Webb, Tanner said, died at the scene. According to the Associated Press, friends and family members told a local television station that Webb was a good man who was firing the gun in celebration of the July Fourth holiday. They said he probably didn't hear the officers clearly and spun around to see what the commotion was, not meaning to point the gun at anyone. Webb was a really nice guy who really loved his two young daughters, said neighbor Chris Young. Attempts to contact Tanner and Raleigh County Sheriff Danny Moore Tuesday evening were unsuccessful. The investigation is continuing. The Associated Press contributed to this story
By Michelle James E-mail: mjames@register-herald.com Published: July 04, 2006 10:39 pm

Webb Case Involves Entire Bureau Updated: July 7, 2006, 4:38 pm
An online website stresses that family and friends of Robert Webb of Raleigh County are concerned that a fair investigation of his death is underway. Webb was shot by two deputies after he allegedly pointed an AK-47 at the officers on Tuesday. Captain Steve Tanner from the Raleigh County Sheriff's Department says that no one person is assigned to handle this case. The entire detective Bureau is over the investigation and will be using outside sources including the medical examiner and prosecuting attorney. Updated: July 7, 2006 4:38pm By Courtroom News

From the janitor all the way up to the head of the Raleigh County Commission, anyone drawing a county paycheck soon can be expected to undergo a test for drug abuse or misuse.
A contract was approved Tuesday by the commission with Southern Regional Treatment Courts Laboratory of Princeton, working in tandem with the Mercer Day Report Center, to perform the checks at $8.50 apiece.
Steve Collins, executive director of the DRC in Princeton, explained that tests are conducted in three phases — pre-employment, for probable cause, and at random.
“No one will know who they are,” Collins advised the commission.
“Even myself. Once the list of names you supply to us will be given, each name will be given a color. That color is put into the database and the database will pick a color. The supervisor will look at the color and see who is cross-referenced. That individual will be screened that day during normal business hours.”
Commission President John Humphrey said he is unaware of any drug problems within any agency of county government.
“But it’s something we’ve been thinking is the right thing to do for some time,” he said of the impending tests, “especially for ones that are in county vehicles, driving regularly out on the highways. We think it’s the right thing to do — randomly drug test our employees. Today, we took forward the step to make that happen.”
Under random testing, some employees might submit a urine sample once a month, others could be tested twice monthly, Collins said.
“A good way to look at it is like bingo,” he said. “You constantly turn the system and a number comes up.”
Collins said his firm performs about 18,000 screens a month, but Raleigh County marks the first county to sign on with him.
OxyContin, known in common vernacular as “hillbilly heroin,” appears most frequently, followed by marijuana and cocaine, Collins told reporters afterward.
Collins makes no judgment when screens are positive, but merely turns over the results to the county or other entity the non-profit company serves.
“It’s up to the county or head of a department to determine what to do with it,” he said. “Each entity has a drug policy. We follow that. Every time we screen, we report.”
Collins acknowledged that some persons examined will show the use of prescription drugs, but the lab director or medical officer can ascertain if the medication is being abused or misused.
Sheriff Steve Tanner told the commission he wants all of his deputies tested at least once in the first year at random, then again if probable cause demands another check.
“We’re satisfied with the random system but we’d like to be established by testing everybody at least once in a fiscal or calendar year,” the sheriff said.
“After they’ve been tested once, then we’re happy with the random system.”
Moreover, Tanner said he would insist on strict supervision, a condition that isn’t imposed on other employee testing unless probable cause surfaces.
Given its unique position in the frame of county government, Tanner said he would make sure the restroom is checked immediately before and after a test to “assure that it is a true and accurate sample from that individual.”
“We have created a drug testing program with the DRCs, to help support the program financially as we grow,” Collins said.
“It’s a self-funding mechanism designed to support county programs.”

By Mannix Porterfield E-mail: mannix@register-herald.com
http://www.register-herald.com/local/x519114006/Raleigh-commission-OKs-drug-testing-of-all-county-employees

Officials named in the wrongful death lawsuit filed Monday claiming negligence on behalf of members of the Raleigh County Sheriff's Department who shot and killed a Cabell Heights man on July 4, 2006, had little or no comment Tuesday regarding the allegations, saying they had not yet received a copy of the suit. The sheriff's department, the Raleigh County Commission, Sheriff Danny Moore, Chief Deputy Steve Tanner, Deputy Greg S. Kade and Deputy John E. Hajash are listed as defendants in the suit filed by Charleston attorneys Michael A. Olivio and Travis A. Griffith on behalf of Mary Webb, widow of Robert Webb. I'm certain we will have very strong comments about it after reading the suit, Tanner said Tuesday afternoon. A spokeswoman for the sheriff's department said Moore, who is out on medical leave, would not comment on the suit and Tanner would speak on behalf of the department. According to Register-Herald archives and the complaint, Webb, 44, was shot to death outside his residence by Hajash and Kade, who responded to a complaint that he was playing loud music and shooting an AK-47 assault rifle outside his Cabell home. Commission president Pat Reed expressed sympathy for Webb's family but said she was unaware of the details of the suit and was unable to comment. Of course, we feel very sorry for the family and we realize that litigation is going on, she said following Tuesday's county commission meeting. I haven't seen the paperwork and really couldn't comment on it if I had because of the litigation. Commission member John Aliff added, We find ourselves in many cases in litigation that we have very little control over. But that's what happens at the Raleigh County Commission level.
http://www.register-herald.com/policecourts/x519097684/Officials-respond-to-lawsuit-against-RCSD

CHARLESTON - Five minutes after an ambulance crew wheeled into Robert Webb's driveway and found him lying there with mortal wounds inflicted by two sheriff's deputies, an emergency technician testified Wednesday in U.S. District Court that he was advised any further medical attention was futile. Webb was hit by police gunfire as he stood in the driveway of his Cabell Heights home the morning of July 4, 2006, clutching a semi-automatic rifle with a full banana clip, and a live, 7.62mm round in the chamber.
One key dispute in the federal lawsuit filed by his widow, Mary Webb, was whether Cpl. Gregory Kade and former Deputy John Hajash, both of the Raleigh County Sheriff's Department, issued a warning for Webb to disarm himself and show empty hands.Kade insisted earlier in the trial that he called out, Police show us your hands, to Webb, but two neighbors testified they never heard such an order before the deputies opened fire, Kade with a Remington Model 870 shotgun and Hajash using a 40-caliber Glock handgun. Critical to the case is whether the plaintiffs can prove that the lawmen denied immediate medical attention to Webb while photographs were taken at the crime scene. Harold Burnside, an emergency medical technician with Jan-Care Ambulance Co., testified during the trial's third day that the crew wasn't impeded in approaching the mortally wounded Cabell Heights resident. Burnside said the crew arrived at 1:21 a.m. and he noticed a flowing pool of blood, suggesting to him Webb's heart was still beating and thus he was alive. While heart monitors were installed, he said deputies cautioned him not to cut away bullet holes in the man's clothing. Following protocol, Burnside said a check was made with the regional command, and a doctor advised them at 1:26 a.m., Do not resuscitate. Burnside testified he found it unusual that a medical examiner didn't examine the body until about 90 minutes after Webb was pronounced dead. Usually, in my experience, a medical examiner goes right up ... .he said. Without elaborating, Burnside said he received a number of anonymous calls on his cell phone after the fatal shooting. He said the calls warned him to mind (his) own business, and that he considered them threatening. Detective James Canaday, who supervised the internal inquiry of the Raleigh County Sheriff's Department, said he found Webb''s actions necessitated the use of deadly force, but emphasized he looked into the matter as he would any other homicide. It's not being actively investigated, he said of the case, but it's not concluded. The defense introduced Webb's semi-automatic rifle, along with a banana clip and the live round found in the weapon that night. While Mary Webb and some police officers repeatedly have called it an AK-47, Webb's attorney, Travis Griffith, of Charleston, corrected them on the proper nomenclature, noting it was a ROMARM-CUGAR Model SAR-1.Canaday explained why he found a live round from Kade's shotgun, along with a spent shell, and casings from Hajash's pistol. In the heat of the moment, Kade ejected the shotgun shell, the detective said. When you're in a high stress situation, a lot of times, you do what comes naturally, he said.
Basically, he was fighting for his life. Canaday said the two officers were placed in extreme stress by the nature of the call. It was reported that a man was shooting toward his house, and police didn't know if there were hostages inside, or whether anyone was endangered by Webb's firing of the weapon. They had to imagine the worst and respond accordingly, he told defense attorney Chip Williams.... and they were thinking they might not come out of this. Canaday said his goal in conducting the investigation was to determine if a crime had occurred and that he found both officers cooperative. In fact, he said, Kade insisted on being interviewed only a few days after the incident, but Canaday preferred to give him two more days to settle down from the trauma. It takes a while for the body to recover from the adrenaline flow, the detective said. After conferring with the prosecuting attorney's office, Canaday said he arrived at the same conclusion that no crime had occurred and there was no reason to provide evidence to a grand jury. I didn't find anything that I probably wouldn't have done, the officer told the court. As for the plaintiff's complaint that Webb was denied immediate medical attention, he added, I didn't find that in the course of my investigation. U.S. District Judge Irene Berger recessed the afternoon portion, allowing an alternate juror to keep a doctor's appointment. Early on, Berger cautioned the jury that she expects the trial to last at least seven days.
By Mannix Porterfield E-mail: mannix@register-herald.com http://www.register-herald.com/todaysfrontpage/x1475585110/EMT-testifies-in-police-shooting

A Beckley man was jailed after State Police say he brandished a 9 mm pistol outside a Cabell Heights residence during an hourlong standoff Thursday. Russell Timothy Gross, 44, was charged with brandishing and two counts of being a person prohibited from possessing a firearm, Trooper R.A. Daniel said. He was not allowed to have firearms because he had been convicted of domestic assault and had been involuntarily committed to a state psychiatric facility in the past. He was being held at Southern Regional Jail. At 5:51 p.m., police received a call that Gross had a gun and was making threats to kill himself, Daniel said. Daniel arrived at 377 Cabell Heights Road, where Gross exited with a 9 mm pistol pointed at Daniel. Daniel drew his service gun and Gross then put his pistol to his head, asking Daniel to shoot him, the trooper said. Several other troopers and Raleigh County sheriff's deputies descended on the scene, securing the area, Daniel said. Lt. Steve Tanner, chief of detectives for the sheriff's department, began negotiations with Gross. Meanwhile, Daniel and Trooper J.L. Howell entered the residence's rear door and reached a spot where they could see Gross at the front. Then when Gross had the pistol placed in his front waistband, Daniel grabbed Gross, taking him off the front steps and securing him and the pistol on the ground. Two others were inside the house when the call was phoned to police, but they managed to exit before the standoff began, Daniel said. Gross discussed some issues with police as to why he started the standoff, but Daniel did not elaborate. He needs to have a psychological evaluation at the earliest convenience, Daniel said.
By Amelia Pridemore .-mail:apridemore@register-herald.com http://www.register-herald.com/local/x519063137/
Beckley-man-arrested-after-an-hourlong-standoff-with-police

Making the jump from a road patrol uniform to a detective’s suit always requires adjustment for a police officer — in more ways than just attire. However, the Raleigh County Sheriff’s Department’s new chief of detectives says he is definitely ready for the new experience and will give the job everything he has. Sgt. Larry Lilly, 30, has been appointed to the position vacated by now-Chief Deputy Steve Tanner, who replaced former Chief Deputy Bill Garaffa. Garaffa retired June 30 after 30 years with the sheriff’s department. Lilly, a lifelong Raleigh County resident, has been with the sheriff’s department since December 1996. His previous roles in the department have been working evening and midnight shift in the road patrol division and a short stint in the warrant division. “Nine out of 10 times, the public has the information that solves cases,” he said. “I would like to work with the public on our cases. “I intend to give this job everything I’ve got and do the best job I can for the public.” So far, Lilly said his biggest challenges have been adjusting to the different functions of the detective bureau vs. road patrol and the administrative duties of his position. However, he has been fortunate to have Detectives Dave Stafford and Jim Canaday — whom he called “two good guys. Also, Sheriff Danny Moore once referred to Tanner as “the best investigator in the state of West Virginia” in a previous Register-Herald story. Lilly admitted he has large shoes to fill, but noted Tanner works just across the hall. “I’ll ask his advice a lot,” he said. The main difference between road patrol and the detective bureau, he said, is time. Road patrol officers go from one emergency call to the next, but detectives — barring very major incidents — get to spend more time on an individual case. Road patrol is an experience he enjoys; however, he is ready to try another facet of law enforcement. “I like both,” Lilly said. “This is definitely an experience I want to try out.” The biggest crime problems in Raleigh County seem to be domestic violence or property-related ones — and a large amount of both are tied to illegal drugs, Lilly said. For example, someone may steal to support a drug habit. He believes the TRIDENT drug task force for both Raleigh and Fayette counties is doing well in fighting the drug trade, and other officers are doing well combating other crimes — so the sheriff’s department should stay the course. “We’re working hard at getting things done,” he said. Lilly said the greatest influences in his life have been his parents. “They gave me every opportunity I could ask for to succeed in life,” he said. “There’s no way they could have done a better job as parents.” At age 20, Lilly became a law enforcement officer because he wanted to help his community and have an exciting career — where the unexpected is to be expected. “I didn’t want to be sitting in a cubicle, doing the same old, same old every day,” he said. “... In law enforcement, you’re out there amongst the public. When you log on duty, you don’t know what you’ll be facing. It could be a bad life-or-death situation, but in law enforcement, things can be fairly routine, too. “...There seems to be more freedom in law enforcement. You’re out of the office doing things.” Working in his native county is an added bonus, Lilly noted — one that often gives him a “home court advantage” on the job. “I know the community, and I have an idea of what’s going on,” he said. “I know a lot of people. That should help, I’m sure. I know on road patrol, I knew who to talk to for different things.” In dealing with the general public, Lilly said his philosophy is to treat people the way he would want to be treated — even people he arrests.
“I’ve had people I’ve arrested thank me — believe it or not,” he said. “Police officers are members of the community, too. They should never put themselves above the public.” When dealing with crime victims, Lilly said officers need to be sensitive — but officers have a job to do. Officers must make sure that all information from them is accurate, and the alleged incidents did actually happen to ensure a successful investigation. The most rewarding part of his job, or any officer’s job, he says, is any time they can help a child. Situations in which a child is in danger — especially at the hands of another person — are especially saddening to him. “It amazes me what people will do to children,” Lilly said. “I don’t have any idea how anyone could hurt a child.” He remembered one teenage boy who once threatened to commit suicide. He said he later saw him after the young man graduated from basic training in the U.S. Army and had put his life back on track. The young man gave Lilly credit.
By Amelia Pridemore E-mail:apridemore@ register-herald.com
http://www.register-herald.com/policecourts/x519065939/New-detective-chief-says-he-ll-give-his-all-to-job

A wrongful death lawsuit filed late Monday afternoon claims members of the Raleigh County Sheriff’s Department acted negligently when they shot and killed a Cabell Heights man who was firing a high-powered weapon in the early morning hours of July 4, 2006.
Filed by Charleston attorneys Michael A. Olivio and Travis A. Griffith on behalf of Mary Webb, the widow of Robert Webb, the suit lists defendants as the Raleigh County Sheriff’s Department, the Raleigh County Commission, Sheriff Danny Moore, then-Chief Deputy Steve Tanner, Deputy Greg S. Kade and Deputy John E. Hajash.
According to Register-Herald files and the complaint, Kade and Hajash were responding to a complaint that Robert A. Webb, 44, was playing loud music and shooting an AK-47 assault rifle outside his Cabell Heights home.
According to the lawsuit, Webb was discharging his firearm in celebration of his birthday and the Fourth of July holiday, but more than 30 minutes had elapsed between the firing of the weapon and the arrival of Kade and Hajash at the Webb residence.
The suit also claims “numerous residents within the neighborhood” were also firing weapons in celebration of the holiday and that Webb never fired his gun to threaten or endanger anyone.
The complaint claims Kade and Hajash parked away from the residence, out of sight, and approached on foot “while using cover to conceal their presence.” It also claims Kade took an assault shotgun from their patrol vehicle instead of his service standard handgun in spite of the fact the call was considered a “non-emergency nuisance call.”
When the deputies arrived on the scene at approximately 1 a.m., Webb was not shooting; still Kade and Hajash remained concealed by a row of trees until they witnessed Webb turn away from them, “at which time they ran toward Robert Webb in order to close the distance between them,” according to the complaint.
“Deputies Kade and Hajash proceeded up the street toward Mr. Webb and shot Mr. Webb while he was standing in the driveway of his home,” the complaint reads. “Deputies Kade and Hajash failed to identify themselves as law enforcement officers prior to firing their fatal shots at Mr. Webb.”
Webb was hit in the head and knocked to the ground by an initial shot from a shotgun, according to the complaint. While he was on the ground, one of the deputies shot him again with a handgun.
The complaint also claims emergency medical personnel were denied immediate access to Webb by members of the Raleigh County Sheriff’s Department, who finished taking photographs before they allowed medical personnel to touch Webb.
“Robert Webb died as a direct and proximate result of being shot by Deputy Kade and Deputy Hajash,” the complaint reads.
The lawsuit claims the Sheriff’s Department and other agents of the Raleigh County Commission failed to conduct a “fair, reasonable, and unbiased investigation of the shooting of Robert Webb,” that the Sheriff’s Department, Moore, Tanner and other agents of the county commission “engaged in acts and words of extreme cruelty” toward Mary Webb, and that they offered no grief counseling to Webb or the couple’s children while the body lay on the driveway for hours.
The suit says Webb never attempted to shoot the deputies, as early statements from officers claimed. It also characterizes the investigation as “hasty and inadequate ... designed solely to absolve Deputies Kade and Hajash from any liability and to taint Robert Webb’s name in the public forum.”
The complaint seeks damages in an amount to be determined by a jury for sorrow, mental anguish and solace; compensation for reasonably expected loss of income and household services of Robert Webb, and reasonable funeral expenses.
It also claims a count of “suffering prior to death” and seeks damages in an amount to be determined by a jury.
A third count, “intentional infliction of emotional distress,” claims the defendants’ conduct was “atrocious, intolerable, and so extreme and outrageous as to exceed the bounds of decency,” that the defendants acted recklessly, and that their actions caused Mrs. Webb to suffer severe emotional distress. She seeks damages for the emotional distress she suffered as a result of such conduct.
The fourth count, “negligent hiring, training and supervision,” claims Moore, Tanner, the sheriff’s department and the county commission failed to properly interview, evaluate and screen the two deputies, train them properly, and failed to monitor and supervise them properly.
For those claims, the estate seeks damages for indignity, embarrassment, humiliation, emotional distress, annoyance and inconvenience in an amount to be determined by the jury. That count also seeks punitive damages in an amount to be determined by the jury and attorney’s fees.
Other counts include negligence, tort of outrage, punitive damages, strict liability, civil conspiracy and spoliation of evidence. The complaint also includes a writ of mandamus, demanding the defendants be compelled to comply with adopted policies and procedures.
The complaint was filed Monday, just before the Raleigh County Circuit Clerk’s office closed at 4:30 p.m. Due to the lateness of the filing, The Register-Herald could not reach defendants named in the case. Messages were left at the sheriff’s office for Moore and Tanner, as well as with County Commission President Pat Reed.
By Audrey StantonE-mail: bnaudrey@register-herald.com
http://www.register-herald.com/local/x519097636/Suit-filed-against-sheriff-and-deputies

Raleigh County Sheriff's Chief Deputy Steve Tanner Thursday defended the actions of both the office and the deputies named in a wrongful death lawsuit. The suit, filed Monday, lists Tanner, the sheriff's department, the Raleigh County Commission, Sheriff Danny Moore, Deputy Greg S. Kade and Deputy John E. Hajash as defendants. The suit was filed by Charleston attorneys Michael A. Olivio and Travis A. Griffith on behalf of Mary Webb, the widow of Robert Webb, who was shot to death by Hajash and Kade in the early-morning hours of July 4, 2006. The deputies had responded to a complaint that Webb, 44, was playing loud music and shooting an AK-47 assault rifle outside his Cabell Heights home. Tanner, speaking on behalf of the office while Moore is on sick leave, issued the following prepared statement: One of the greatest problems that the legal system in West Virginia faces is frivolous lawsuits, meaning that anyone can sue anyone for anything. In this state you can sue someone without the case having any merit. Now, these frivolous suits are dismissed once they get before the judge, but you still have the requirement of litigation and the request not to air the case to the media. Such is the position that the sheriff's office finds itself in at this time. The attorney's firm that has filed this case with the circuit court has also filed it with the media, but as of this date has not served us, so I still have not seen the lawsuit. Every decent person feels sympathy for the loss of life, but the Raleigh County sheriff's office is absolutely unwavering with their support of the deputies involved in the shooting and I assure the public that the deputies acted in the only way they could and survive the situation that Mr. Webb created by his actions. We at the sheriff's office are required to protect the public and the actions taken on the night in question were necessary to protect you, the public. We can have no further comment on the lawsuit because we will respect the legal system and the rules of litigation.
E-mail:mjames@register-herald.com
http://www.register-herald.com/policecourts/x519097768/Chief-deputy-responds-to-wrongful-death-lawsuit

BECKLEY- A federal jury Monday cleared two Raleigh County sheriff's deputies of any wrongdoing in the fatal shooting of a Cabell Heights man five years ago after he pointed a loaded, semi-automatic rifle at them in his driveway. U.S. District Judge Irene Berger polled the four-man, two-woman jury after it deliberated two hours, and found the verdict was unanimous, ending a six-day trial in Beckley. Key points the attorneys for the plaintiff, Mary Webb, hammered away were that Cpl. Gregory Kade and a former deputy, John Hajash, were negligent in setting up a violent scene that led to Robert Webb's death in a Fourth of July shooting and then denied a medical team immediate access to him as he lay dying. Chip Williams, chief counsel for the lawmen, applauded the jury, saying afterward the members carefully sifted through the evidence and reached the only logical conclusion. I've known Greg all my life, Williams said. I was proud to represent him. I know he is a fine human being. Kade declined to comment, but Hajash suggested he and his onetime partner were put in a position where they had no choice but to fire on Webb after they were called to his home in the wee hours of July 4, 2006, to investigate a neighbor's complaint he had been firing a weapon toward his house. I knew there was no wrongdoing on our part, Hajash said. Hajash became the center of the case Travis Griffith and Michael Olivio led against the officers, after a deputy medical examiner showed a downward trajectory of his third shot from a Glock Model 23 handgun, with the bullet lodging in the lower part of the victim's back. Using a mannequin, Olivio suggested Hajash moved from his original position behind Webb's pickup truck and fired on him after he was down and bleeding from a brain injury inflicted by Kade's tactical shotgun. Hajash maintained earlier he fired his final shot when he saw Webb rolling and wasn't sure if he intended to fire the semi-automatic rifle, with a live round in the chamber and the safety off. But Olivio argued the shot couldn't have been fired where Hajash originally stood, given the bullet was unimpeded by any internal organs or bones unless he had a bank shot off from the left. The shooting did not happen the way police said it did, the attorney maintained. Williams zeroed in on Olivio's implication that Hajash moved in for a closer shot, telling the jury. That's not only inconsistent with the evidence, that's outrageous. Jurors exonerated the two officers of negligence, denying Webb immediate medical attention, and inflicting emotional distress. Normally, lawsuits against public bodies in this case, the Raleigh County Commission was a co-defendant are handled in state courts, but a question of a potential civil rights violation moved it into the federal arena. The defense's sixth and final witness, Samuel Faulkner, an Ohioan who has trained instructors at the West Virginia State Police Academy, found no fault with Kade and Hajash, saying they acted properly in every phase of the operation. If anything, perhaps they waited too long to shoot, he said at one point. Kade and Hajash were dispatched to Webb's house by a woman who told the 911 center a man was firing a handgun toward his house. Upon arrival, the two said they parked separate prowl cars a quarter of a mile away, a point the plaintiff's lawyers questioned, given the timeline. The officers arrived at 1:09 and Webb was shot three minutes later. Faulkner said their silent and stealthy approach was proper, telling the jury, I would never pull up and announce myself in that situation, because I am a target. Three neighbors of Webb testified they never heard Kade call out, Police show us your hands, just before the pair opened fire. If not, Williams countered in closing arguments. What was it that caused Mr. Webb to turn around and face them? As for not providing immediate medical aid, Kermit Moore of Bluefield, another defense lawyer, recalled Hajash's frantic appeal to 911 to bring an EMS team immediately to the residence, when he said, Oh, my God. Shots fired! Send EMS. He was literally scared to death, the lawyer said, noting Hajash was only 23 at the time. You can hear the quiver in his voice. Moreover, the defense showed the jury a picture of Webb in a pool of blood with a heart monitor attached to his chest. Testimony showed that a doctor advised the Jan-Care Ambulance team do not resuscitate five minutes after the medics arrived. Olivio and Griffith emphasized that neither officer bothered to try to contact the Webb home before moving in on Webb to check the welfare of his wife and two daughters. Another point of the plaintiffs was the woman who reported Webb's gunfire earlier in the night Amy Smith wanted police to merely drive by the residence. She knew that would have been enough, Olivio said. By not turning on their lights and sirens, leaving their cars a distance away, taking cover behind a hedgerow initially, and being there in dark uniforms not visible by the dusk-and-dawn light at the home, he said, They set the scenario, and he reacted to it. The plaintiffs tandem used witnesses to say that firing a weapon on holidays, especially the Fourth of July, was common in that neighborhood, but Williams said he never knew of any such experience while growing up in a rural community. That is not normal behavior in southern West Virginia, or anywhere else, he said. When Webb faced them with the rifle, mistakenly referred to at times as an AK-47, Faulkner said the officers were left with no other option but to fire first. That is the only response that is available at that time, he said. Twice, a court aide walked to the jury at the behest of Williams and displayed the foreign-made rifle. They have a job where they have to make decisions about their security and the security of others in seconds and minutes, the Beckley attorney said.
By Mannix Porterfield E-mail: mannix@register-herald.com
http://www.register-herald.com/todaysfrontpage/x1475589435/Raleigh-deputies-cleared-in-fatal-shooting-of-man

Defending his decision to open fire on a man six years ago, Raleigh County Sheriff's Deputy Gregory Kade told a federal jury Tuesday he had no choice after Robert Webb shouldered a semi-automatic weapon he had been shooting at his Cabell Heights home in the wee hours of the Fourth of July. Webb dropped to his driveway after Kade fired at him with a Remington Model 807 shotgun, and Deputy John Hajash fired a 40-caliber handgun. Just before the officers opened fire, Kade said he called out to the victim in a loud voice, Police show us your hands; testimony that two of Webb's neighbors disputed. Kade testified on the second day of a trial in which Webb's widow, Mary, alleges the Raleigh County Sheriff's Department and the Raleigh County Commission were negligent, that he was worried about the safety of her and two daughters, Amanda and Samantha, since the first EOC call indicated shots were being directed at Webb's house. I was concerned for the safety of whoever was in the house, said Kade, called to the stand initially by one of the plaintiff's lawyers, Travis Griffith, of Charleston. In my mind, if he's shooting at them, he's going to shoot at me. In the jury's absence, U.S. District Judge Irene Berger granted a defense motion for a summary judgment that excused then-Sheriff Danny Moore and his successor, Steve Tanner, from individual liability. Kade was moonlighting at a Holiday Inn along Harper Road, taking a break outside, and talking to Hajash, when the latter got a call about a man firing a weapon in Cabell Heights. The two immediately took off to the neighborhood in separate cars, after Kade logged himself into active duty. A focus has been placed on the officers parking patrol cars a quarter of a mile from the Webb residence, arriving without their sirens or distress signals turned on. Kade said the two approached the scene as inconspicuously as they could with the objective to find cover, unaware of what they might find. Kade explained he wasn't sure what the two lawmen would encounter, recalling an ugly domestic incident a short time earlier when he and Hajash had went to fetch a 16-year-old girl from her father, and people in five houses all related in some fashion turned on them. Besides, he said, the use of lights and sirens normally is a deterrent of minimum value. Webb claims in the lawsuit that the officers refused her dying husband immediate medical treatment so photographs could be taken at the scene, but Kade denied this. I don't remember any photos being taken while I was there, said Kade, still a corporal on the force. Hajash has since taken a job with a coal company. Just before the officers fired, he said, Webb was standing adjacent the driver's side of his truck, and shouldered the rifle. It wasn't a pistol, Kade said. It was an AK-47, a very dangerous weapon. The only response I could do was to fire my weapon. One neighbor, Wanda Young, said she never heard the officers issue a warning to Webb, but believed she would have had such a directive been issued, even if dogs had been barking. Chris Hatfield, another neighbor, likewise said he didn't hear the deputies warn Webb to disarm himself before they shot him. Elmer Redden, a third neighbor called by Griffith, said he didn't think it unusual for Webb to be firing a semi-automatic firearm on a holiday. He would shoot up in the air, which was a common thing to do, he said. At no time did he observe anyone administer any medical aid to Webb, but said he noticed the police ordered Mary Webb back inside her house. I just didn't want her to see her husband lying there in the driveway, Kade testified. Asked by Griffith why he didn't bother to check on the welfare of her children, since he earlier said he was concerned about the occupants of the Webb household, the officer said, I assumed the mother would have known if there was something wrong with the children. Kade described himself as overwhelmed by the quick turn of events, after he and Hajash tried in vain to encircle Webb but were unable to get through a locked gate and knew the fence would rattle and give them away if they tried to scale it. I knew the totality of what happened, the officer said in retrospect. Nobody wants that to happen. Griffith said earlier the defense might attempt to show that Webb had it in for law enforcement officers but indicated in opening arguments that his client's husband counted a number of policemen as friends, among them a deputy sheriff who sang at his funeral. One such friend, Victor Birchfield, a retired Raleigh County deputy, described Webb as a close friend who generously volunteered his time on behalf of a trout association at Glade Creek. He was a good-natured fellow and had a passion for trout fishing, the former officer said. Tanner, who became chief deputy on the day of the 2006 incident, testified the first priority in such an incident is to assure the safety of citizens and officers alike. Asked about Webb's shooting after an internal investigation was performed, Tanner at one point told the court, I did find it was appropriate. Tanner was quizzed at length about a document indicating the department had a drug-and-alcohol testing policy applicable in cases in which officers are involved in motor vehicle accidents that result in serious injury or death, or have discharged a firearm. The sheriff said this wasn't an actual policy but simply a federal guideline in the event the department ever wanted to adopt one and couldn't say why former Sheriff Frank Lavender included it as part of office protocol. Before any testing, there has to be reasonable suspicion of alcohol or drug abuse, Tanner said, explaining why neither Kade nor Hajash was tested. Everybody has rights. Even law enforcement officers have rights.
By Mannix Porterfield E-mail: mannix@register-herald.com
http://www.register-herald.com/todaysfrontpage/x1005782776/Officer-takes-the-stand-in-police-shooting-suit

Police say officers fired at man in self defense. Two Raleigh County Sheriff's Deputies shot and killed a Cabell Heights man early Tuesday morning, citing self-defense, according to a news release from Chief Deputy Steve Tanner. Tanner indicated that the two deputies, who were not identified, were responding to a complaint made by neighbors that Robert Webb, 44, was firing a gun in the neighborhood. When the officers arrived at the scene they found Webb armed with an AK-47 assault rifle. Tanner said the deputies identified themselves and told Webb to put down his weapon, but when Webb responded by placing the rifle on his shoulder and aiming it at the officers, they fired simultaneously in defense. Webb, Tanner said, died at the scene. According to the Associated Press, friends and family members told a local television station that Webb was a good man who was firing the gun in celebration of the July Fourth holiday. They said he probably didn’t hear the officers clearly and spun around to see what the commotion was, not meaning to point the gun at anyone. Webb was “a really nice guy who really loved his two young daughters,” said neighbor Chris Young. Attempts to contact Tanner and Raleigh County Sheriff Danny Moore Tuesday evening were unsuccessful. The investigation is continuing. The Associated Press contributed to this story
By Michelle James E-mail: mjames@register-herald.com
http://www.register-herald.com/local/x519065615/Deputies-shoot-kill-man-armed-with-AK-47

Two Raleigh County Sheriff's Deputies are on paid leave after shooting a man early Tuesday morning. It happened around 1 thirty a-m. The deputies responded to a complaint on forty-four year old Robert Webb, in Cabell Heights. The caller said Webb was shooting an A-K-47 at his house. According to the Raleigh County Sheriff's Department, when the deputies identified themselves and ordered Webb to disarm, he turned and pointed the gun in their direction. The deputies fired simultaneously at Webb, killing him instantly. Raleigh County Sheriff Danny Moore says the men are on paid leave while the incident is under investigation and they will receive counseling. Moore says it's a difficult thing for the officers and the family of the victim. We hate it when something like this happens. You can tear it to pieces, dissect it, but the officers acted exactly like I would have or anyone else that's trained in this situation to do, says Moore. The Sheriff's Department is waiting on an autopsy report from the State Medical Examiner to see if drugs or alcohol were involved. Updated: July 5, 2006, 4:39 pm

CHARLESTON - Earlier this month two of his deputies were absolved of wrongdoing after fatally shooting an armed man, but in the aftermath of a federal trial, Raleigh County Sheriff Steve Tanner is looking at two non-existent policies presented as fact in the case. One is a drug and alcohol testing policy, which merely consisted of federal guidelines if one were ever implemented, Tanner said. A second element that surfaced in the trial involved a purported policy in which any deputy discharging a firearm or involved in an accident causing serious injury or death must be investigated by a special board of inquiry consisting of the sheriff, chief deputy, and an outside officer with the rank of sergeant or above, or the State Police. I've never seen that in my life before, Tanner said Wednesday. I don't know where that came from. Actually, he said, the department's policy states that a three-member review panel will look into any shooting incident. On that board, the sheriff assigns one member, the Deputy Sheriff's Association picks one, and the two agree on a third member, Tanner said. Cpl. Gregory Kade and former Deputy John Hajash were exonerated in a wrongful death suit brought by Mary Webb, widow of Robert Webb, who was shot in the driveway of his Cabell Heights home in the wee hours of July 4, 2006, while wielding a semi-automatic rifle;. I'm very happy that the deputies and sheriff's office were completely justified and vindicated, Tanner said. But I think somewhere throughout this, we've kind of forgotten how much the Webb family has suffered. I'm really hoping, five years later now, this might help them to recover from their tragic loss. I hope this will help them in their healing process. Tanner said the trial failed to expose any flaws in his department's training and procedures. It does remind me clearly that we need to discipline ourselves to keep our policies, our procedures cleaned up and updated, he said. Mindful of that, Tanner said a former law enforcement officer, now a practicing attorney, is looking at all of his department's policies at the sheriff's request and that he is getting input on this from both the Deputy Sheriff's Association and the Civil Service Board. .I'm not saying that has an extremely high priority, but it's something we will accomplish to avoid these very confusing situations in the future, the sheriff said. As for testing officers for drugs and alcohol, Tanner said no such policy ever existed in the first place and that the misconception came from a federal guideline issued in the 1990s and kept on file by former Sheriff Frank Lavender. That was just research material, which shouldn't have been put in, Tanner said. Very apparently, it was research material. It says it was research material when presented. Tanner said his department is forbidden from an after-the-fact test, applied, for instance, to an officer involved in a vehicle crash. If we say you wrecked a car and we smell alcohol and believe you've been drinking and have bloodshot eyes, now that's very reasonable then, but we're articulating our suspicion, he said. Absent that, one cannot simply administer a drug test, he said. Tanner said the jury's verdict, reached after a six-day trial in Beckley, showed his men acted responsibly in the Webb shooting. I don't think it requires any type of changes with regard to what we do, he said. We are obligated to always try to stay on the cutting edge of training, of equipment, and to reflect that with our policy and procedures. It's something we will endeavor to stay on top of. Above all, for now, he said, the focus should stay on the Webb family. We really do have a number of us who still have the Webb family in our prayers, he said. I really hope they're able to put this tragic incident behind them and move forward with their lives. I hope this gives them closure.
By Mannix Porterfield E-mail: mannix@register-herald.com
http://www.register-herald.com/todaysfrontpage/x2057656582/Raleigh-sheriff-s-policies-reviewed

Pretrial motions were presented this week in Beckley before U.S. District Court Judge Irene Berger in a lawsuit claiming a Cabell Heights man shot and killed by two Raleigh County Sheriff's deputies on July 4, 2006, was denied immediate medical attention. The incident occurred when 44-year old Robert Webb was allegedly playing loud music and firing a semi-automatic weapon outside his residence, in what plaintiffs say was a celebration of his birthday and Independence Day. This happened 30 minutes before police arrived at the scene, according to court documents. The complaint further adds that Webb never discharged his firearm in a manner to threaten or endanger the safety of himself or other persons. Deputies Greg Kade and John Hajash responded to the scene after a neighbor called the administrative line to the Raleigh County Sheriff's department to complain that Webb was shooting a gun at his own house. The neighbor called the non-emergency line to remain anonymous to avoid repeated threats to her by Mr. Webb, according to court documents. Webb is then alleged to have pointed the weapon at Hajash and Kade, at which point they shot and killed him. The lawsuit, which was filed by Michael Olivio and Travis Griffith, who represent Mary Webb, the widow of Robert Webb, states that upon arrival at the scene, emergency medical personnel were denied immediate access by the sheriff's department. The complaint further states that emergency personnel were instructed not to touch the patient until Raleigh County Sheriff's Department personnel were finished taking photographs. The defense disagrees with this, saying medical records back up the fact that Webb was indeed given immediate medical attention. Berger granted several plaintiff's motions Wednesday, including one for the proper identification of the weapon involved in the shooting. Plaintiffs said they would also like for the defense not to use the word AK-47 during testimony, since they say the weapon used was a ROMARM-CUGER Model SAR-1. Berger said if it was an AK-47, she would not preclude defense from using the word, however. Berger also granted the plaintiffs motion to exclude evidence pertaining to the character of the deceased or to Mary Webb. Berger denied the plaintiffs motion to exclude testimony of events prior to Webb's death, saying that this information would be relevant to the case. The plaintiff's last motion was for jury view; yet, Berger ruled a jury view to be unnecessary with the technology that is readily available. The defense made one motion Wednesday, which was to preclude reference to a recorded conversation between the parties, occurring after the fact, dealing with workers compensation benefits. Berger ruled that this evidence would not be admissible to the case-in-chief but could be used for impeachment purposes. A trial has been set for 8:30 a.m. Monday, May 2, in U.S. District Court in Beckley.
http://www.register-herald.com/local/x69808625/Motions-made-in-suit-filed-over-police-shooting-death-of-Cabell-Heights-man

A paramedic told a jury in U.S. District Court Friday that his crew was in no way impeded by two sheriff’s deputies after they mortally wounded a Cabell Heights man who had confronted them in his driveway with a semi-automatic rifle.
As the defense of Cpl. Gregory Kade and his partner at the time, former Deputy John Hajash, opened, two neighbors described Robert Webb as abusive, and one of them testified he harbored contempt for law enforcement and once imparted an implied threat to hurt her.
Chief defense attorney Chip Williams told federal Judge Irene Berger he had one last witness to offer Monday, after which each side agreed they needed an hour apiece for closing arguments in Mary Webb’s case against the two officers and the Raleigh County Commission.
Before the jury returned for the day, Berger denied a defense motion for a directed verdict, saying a number of issues the attorneys raised needed to be decided by the jury.
In her lawsuit, Mary, the shooting victim’s widow maintains that Hajash, now working for a coal firm, and Kade sought to delay immediate medical treatment of her dying husband as he lay in a large pool of blood in their driveway so that photographs could be taken of the crime scene.
But the paramedic in charge of the medical team in the early hours of July 4, 2006, Michael Jenkins, said the official arrival time of the Jan-Care Ambulance Co. crew of 1:21 a.m. was the same as when Webb was examined.
“When I arrived at the scene, I arrived at the patient,” the Princeton resident said.
A heart monitoring device was attached immediately, absent any interference from the police, Jenkins said, adding he detected no blood pressure, no pulse — in short, no signs of life.
Five minutes after he arrived, Jenkins said he put in a call to the regional command in keeping with protocol, and a doctor advised him, “do not resuscitate.”
Had someone attempted to deny him access to Webb, the paramedic said, he would have reported the matter, explaining, “It’s actually a crime.”
Amy Smith, a registered nurse who lived in Webb’s neighborhood, told the jury she had had some run-ins with him, initially over him backing a truck into her yard, and their relationship worsened after she contacted the sheriff’s department regarding a trespassing incident.
Afterward, Webb confronted her in a surly manner, she said, saying, “I have a 9mm gun. I’ll be your worst nightmare.”
Moreover, he once vented against law enforcement and society in general, Smith said, quoting him as saying, “I hate the law. I hate society. I drink. I smoke dope. I don’t want the law up here. I’ll have them leaving with their tails between their legs.”
When cross-examined by Travis Griffith, one of the plaintiff’s attorneys, Smith acknowledged that Webb never actually pointed a weapon at her.
Even so, Smith said she was “constantly harassed” by Webb and took his remarks as a threat.
“You didn’t like Rob Webb, did you?” Griffith asked.
“I didn’t like his behavior,” Smith replied. “It’s fair to say he didn’t like me.”
Around 11:30 p.m. the night of July 3, Smith recalled hearing blaring music coming from Webb’s driveway and then the staccato sounds of a firearm.
“It didn’t sound like any gun I had ever heard,” she told Williams, as the attorney questioned her about the events of that night.
At that point, she called the administrative line of the sheriff’s department and was switched over to the 911 center, telling a dispatcher that she heard gunshots being fired by Webb toward his house. The two lawmen have testified they rushed to the scene, leaving their cars 1/4 of a mile away, because they feared Webb was firing shots into his residence, with his wife and daughters inside, and wanted to enter the area unseen.
Sharon Coffey, a 14-year dispatcher for 911, told Griffith under cross-examination that the deputies never checked on the welfare of anyone inside Webb’s house. The deputies, however, testified earlier there was no need to do so, since Mrs. Webb rushed outside her home immediately after her husband was gunned down.
Once Webb was shot with Kade’s tactical shotgun, and a Glock Model 23 handgun by Kade, she said, the officers immediately summoned a medical team.
“The only way I could characterize it was a sense of urgency,” she said, adding that Kade stayed in communication with the EMS team to direct them to the home as quickly as possible.
Then-Raleigh County Sheriff Danny Moore has testified the department had no actual drug-and-alcohol testing policy for deputies involved in motor vehicle accidents with serious injury or death, or the discharge of a firearm, but only a “suggestion” he inherited from a former sheriff as to how one should be devised.
Moore told Williams he turned over all the information gathered by a review board to the prosecuting attorney, and the prosecutor found no reason to pursue the incident further.
Griffith hammered away at the post-shooting review board, telling Moore he understood the department policy called for one consisting of him, the chief deputy and an officer with at least the rank of sergeant from an outside agency, or the West Virginia State Police, but the board looking into Webb’s death contained none of those three elements.
“What we did was what the West Virginia Code states,” Moore said.
Another neighbor, Martha Blevins, portrayed Webb as a bad neighbor who was often abusive and threatening, and made obscene gestures when he and a friend gathered in the street, forcing her to drive around them.
“I got everything from the finger to yelling at me,” she said. “It was sometimes every day.”
On one occasion, she said, Webb rode an all-terrain vehicle into her yard, with a weapon on the top, and called out to her, “Come out, I have a present for you.”
Just when the six-member jury will begin deliberating is uncertain, but the case follows the normal procedure of summations by the two sides, and instructions to jurors before they can begin.
Williams indicated he would need about an hour Monday to present his sixth and final witness on behalf of Kade and Hajash.
By Mannix Porterfield E-mail: mannix@register-herald.com

Like all parties involved in a week-long trial surrounding the fatal shooting of a Cabell Heights man five years ago by two sheriff's deputies, Raleigh County Commission John Aliff considered the incident tragic. At the same time, Aliff felt a sense of relief that neither Cpl. Gregory Kade nor his onetime partner, John Hajash, or the commission were held liable in Robert Webb's death. A six-member jury deliberated two hours Monday before absolving the lawmen and the commission of any liability in a wrongful death brought by Webb's widow, Mary. I was elated to hear that those deputies were cleared, and the county commission, Aliff said. It's just a bad thing for anything like that ever happen. We're certainly glad that we were found to not be guilty of any wrongdoing. Had the jury ruled in favor of the plaintiffs, Aliff said the county would have shared in any judgment through its normal insurance channels. Still, it's a situation where no matter what is done within the county, if it involves county employees, the commission ultimately has to bear a certain amount of that responsibility ... Aliff said. Webb was shot in the driveway of his home in 2006 in the early morning hours of July 4, after firing a semi-automatic rifle to celebrate both his birthday and Independence Day. Attorneys for the plaintiffs contended that Webb was denied immediate medical attention, but the defense countered with a paramedic's testimony that their arrival time coincided with treatment of the victim. Testimony at times focused on two aspects of the Raleigh County Sheriff's Department. One was a vague drug-and-alcohol testing policy for officers involved in the discharge of a firearm, and motor vehicle accidents in which serious injuries or death occurs. Another element involved the policy of handling internal investigations, and whether they must be done by a three-member board of inquiry comprised of the sheriff, chief deputy and a member of an outside law enforcement agency with the rank of sergeant or above, or the West Virginia State Police. Sheriff Steve Tanner, who became chief deputy on the very day Webb was shot, was unavailable for comment Tuesday. Aliff declined to comment on either the drug testing policy or board of inquiry, and whether the commission might want to pursue either. We basically fund the sheriff's department, but as far as the structure and how they get their job done is more or less up to those professionals, the commission president said. If there needs to be any changes, I would defer to the sheriff to make those decisions
By Mannix Porterfield E-mail: mannix@register-herald.com
http://www.register-herald.com/local/x1475590440/Commissioner-Aliff-elated-by-deputy-verdict

Leadoff witness Mary Webb testified Monday in federal court she never heard two sheriff's deputies warn her husband to lay down an AK-47 before they fatally wounded him after he had fired the rifle to celebrate both his birthday and the Fourth of July. Webb is suing both the Raleigh County Sheriff's Department and two lawmen on grounds the officers delayed medical attention in order to photograph Robert Webb as he lay dying at his Cabell Heights Home in the wee hours of Independence Day in 2006.Webb told the jury of four men and two women, and one female alternate, her television was set on low in her bedroom but she never heard what the defense says it will show was a warning to her husband: Police. Show me your hands. A daughter, Amanda Webb, then 11 years old, followed her to the stand and testified her father didn't fire the so-called assault rifle when she returned to the house around 1 a.m. after a family party. Defense attorney Chip Williams, in his opening remarks, said evidence will show that the deputies, Greg Kade and John Hajash, issued the standard warning to an armed suspect, then reacted as they had been trained to do when Webb leveled the loaded rifle at them, with one round in the chamber. I heard a different type of gunshot; Webb's widow testified, in a trial that U.S. District Judge Irene Berger suggested could last at least seven days. When she raced outdoors to investigate, Webb said her husband was sprawled on the driveway, and, I didn't know who had hurt who, but was gruffly told she couldn't go near her husband. I was told very harshly to get back in the house, she said. Her daughter told the plaintiff's lead attorney, Travis Griffith, that she noticed her father's firearm was under the truck while she sat in the cab watching him perform some routine maintenance. The family, including another daughter, Samantha, had enjoyed a holiday cookout and some time in a swimming pool that evening before the fatal shooting. Mary Webb's contention is that Hajash, now a coal miner, and Kade, who remains on the force and appeared in uniform for the opening day of trial, displayed a cavalier attitude toward her husband's wounds. They walked over him like he was a rag doll, she said. Webb described her husband as a redneck with a fondness for fishing and hunting, but who also was a sensitive mate who often left flowers on her car as a sign of his affection for her. Timelines are critical in this trial, as Griffith laid out in his opening remarks to the jury. Documents show shots were fired by police at 1:12 a.m., that the EMTs were toned out one minute later, and that paramedics arrived in Webb's driveway at 1:21 a.m. No attempt is made to resuscitate Robert Webb, Griffith said. Rob Webb didn't have to die. His death is a direct result of the defendants negligence. Then, he cautioned jurors that the defense attorneys would attempt to assassinate Webb's character, saying, The only defense they have in this case is to stomp on Robert Webb's grave. Williams wasted no time emphasizing the negative, telling the jury that Webb had three times the amount of alcohol in his blood required to declare one too drunk to operate a motor vehicle. The attorney made several references to the AK-47, saying at one stage, it's a dangerous weapon in the hands of a sober person. Then, later, he added, It's not a firecracker. It's not a toy. It's an assault rifle. When the officers arrived, Williams said, they were unsure if Webb were firing into his home, or endangering any of the neighbors. For that reason, he said, the officers were in sync with police training not to rush in with the lights and sirens blaring on their patrol cars. In fact, they parked about a quarter of a mile from the scene of the shooting and inched their way carefully to his residence, he said. With the weapon shouldered and aimed at the officers, Williams said, All he had to do was pull the trigger. As soon as the officers opened fire one with a .40-caliber handgun, the other with a shotgun they radioed in with this message Oh, my God! Shots fired! Suspect down. Three minutes after the paramedic unit arrived, Williams said, a monitor showed no signs of life, with a reading that Webb had flatlined. He said evidence will show that the combination of wounds Webb would have ruled out survival. Berger narrowed the pool of prospective jurors down to the six-plus-one after asking them a series of questions, including one that provoked some laughter: Have you ever had a bad experience with a police officer? A woman told of getting a traffic ticket in North Carolina, and when she began sharing the details, Berger quipped, I'd be careful about admissions in a courtroom.
By Mannix Porterfield E-mail: mannix@register-herald.com
http://www.register-herald.com/todaysfrontpage/x614903503/Wife-gives-testimony-in-Raleigh-police-suit

Anyone who operates a county vehicle for the Raleigh County Sheriff’s department will be facing random drug tests twice a year and all other department employees stand to be tested once per year.
“The Sheriff’s Department is going to move forward testing their employees immediately,” said Steve Tanner, sheriff-elect for Raleigh County at Tuesday’s Raleigh County Commission meeting.
According to Tanner, drug testing will include a number of preliminary tests for drugs as well as for alcohol.
One of the specifications is that the drug-testing vendor come to the sheriff’s department to test the deputies or employees on site, at random.
“We have a tremendous disadvantage telling someone we need you drug tested, it’s a surprise, drive over here — and then we run into a number of issues where the tests can be tampered with, rather than have the employee come to work and there’s a guy waiting on them to test them,” said Tanner.
Tanner stood before the commission to ask the members to consider making it a countywide policy.
“We have the money within the sheriff’s budget right now, where the sheriff’s department will pay for the testing of the employees, but we’re hoping to get a better deal if we use all the employees operating county vehicles (whether that be maintenance, etc.),” said Tanner.
“There would be a higher number of people being tested, so we’d get a lower discount volume rate on the employees. It would be savings for us if you would consider making this a countywide policy to test,” he said.
“It would seem appropriate that maintenance people ... should be exposed to random drug testing since they operate county equipment and it would seem responsible on our part to do this,” said Tanner.
Commission President Pat Reed said commissioners had recently decided, prior to Tanner’s proposal brought before the commission, to implement countywide drug testing.
“It happened to be at the same time — the commission has determined that we will initiate all county employees to be under random drug testing. We have already asked our attorney to prepare those guidelines,” said Reed.
According to Reed, all employees in all departments will likely be part of the new requirement.
By Jackie Ayres E-mail: jayres@register-herald.com
http://www.register-herald.com/local/x519106260/Sheriff-s-department-to-implement-drug-testing