RSS Feed
|
|
|
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Man faces charges in hunter's shooting
According to Washington County Sheriff Richard Stringer, Billy Ray Nelson faces multiple drug charges in addition to a charge of reckless endangerment for allegedly shooting Joe Patrick while he was hunting in the woods near Charity Chapel. Information gathered by deputies at the scene indicated that the victim was shot while another hunter was attempting to cut off some dogs that were being used in the hunt. Following the incident, Patrick was flown by helicopter to USA Medical Center in Mobile where he underwent treatment for buckshot wounds. No one claimed responsibility for the shooting. Stringer said during the continuing investigation, Nelson was identified as the alleged shooter. He was also sought on charges of manufacture of a controlled substance and possession of a controlled substance for allegedly operating a methamphetamine lab in the area. The sheriff said last week he received information that Nelson was in Mobile County and traced him to a residence in Tillman's Corner. "I notified the local police department, but by the time officers arrived he (Nelson) had fled," said Stringer. "No one at the residence would admit to knowing of his whereabouts." On Thursday, the sheriff said he received a tip that Nelson was staying at a residence in Niceville, Fla. and contacted the police department there. "I asked them to be on the lookout at that location for a vehicle with an Alabama tag," he said. "The Niceville officers kept a watch on the house, but never saw a vehicle that fit the description we had given them. We decided to take a chance and search the residence for the suspect anyway and it paid off." Nelson was found sleeping inside the residence and arrested around 8 a.m., Friday, June 15. He was transported to the Okaloosa County, Fla. Sheriff's Department in Crestview then extradited back to Washington County.
In addition to the reckless endangerment and drug charges, Nelson also faces a charge of illegally using buckshot because of when the incident took place during hunting season. As of Monday, he was being held in the Washington County Jail without bond.
|
for larger version       |
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
)
