| Sources |
- [S84] E-Mail, Monika Myers [Elmoppe@aol.com], 10 Feb 2013.
- [S142] Newspaper Article, Walker County Messenger (LaFayette, GA), 21 May 2003.
Authorities continue to probe fatal shootin
by Eric Beavers and Catherine Edgemo
Walker County Sheriff Steve Wilson said authorities are not ready to decide whether they will charge a Fairview man in his grandson’s shooting death.
Steven Ray Woody died Sunday afternoon from wounds apparently inflicted by his twin brother with a 12-gauge shotgun blast to the neck and jaw, Wilson said. The boys were at their grandfather’s house at 215 Lytle Road when they found their grandfather’s loaded shotgun.
Progress in the investigation still indicates the shooting was accidental. Authorities are sifting through conflicting information to determine whether to charge Charles Myers with reckless conduct in the incident, he said.
Early reports indicated Myers locked up his house and departed for Gatlinburg Sunday, not knowing the boys’ mother would unlock the house and leave the boys there unattended; however, another report received Tuesday evening indicates Myers left the boys asleep in the home and thought their mother would pick them up later.
“Nobody has been charged with anything,” Wilson said Tuesday. “The investigation is still continuing. So far, we believe the shooting is accidental.
“We want to be sure we are doing the right thing,” he said. “We’ve got four years to charge someone with a felony, and there’s no sense in jumping to conclusions within 48 hours.”
Lookout Mountain Judicial Circuit District Attorney Herbert “Buzz” Franklin on Tuesday said he did not want to speculate about the outcome of the case or any potential charges
“We don’t want to say what might happen,” Franklin said.
“I would say that any charges, if there are charges, they would be after the funeral out of respect for the family,” Wilson said. “They’re not going anywhere.”
Wilson, on Wednesday, said he had discussed the possibility of charging Myers with reckless conduct, a misdemeanor, with the district attorney’s office, but it would be “premature” to say whether authorities will file any charges.
Family members could not be reached Tuesday
- [S142] Newspaper Article, Walker County Messenger (LaFayette, GA), 20 May 2003.
Sheriff: Grandfather won't be charged with negligence in teen's deat | Loca
by Eric Beaver
The shooting of a 13-year-old Rossville boy by his twin brother did not happen because his grandfather left a loaded weapon exposed in his house, Walker County Sheriff Steve Wilson said.
Steven Ray Woody died on Sunday afternoon from wounds apparently inflicted by his brother with a 12-gauge shotgun blast to the neck and jaw, Wilson said. Progress in the investigation still indicates the shooting was accidental, and seems to have cleared the grandfather of any liability for Woody’s death.
“It doesn’t look like the grandfather had any knowledge that the boys were going to be there in the home (on Sunday),” he said.
The boys’ mother picked them up from their grandfather’s house early Sunday morning, Wilson said. After they left, he locked the house and went out of town.
“At some point during the day Sunday, the mother unlocked the house and let them back in,” Wilson said. “
Wilson said he did not know why the mother took them back to the grandfather’s house.
“If anybody is negligent it would be the mother, not the grandfather, but only if we can prove the mother knew the weapon was there,” he said.
“Nobody has been charged with anything,” Wilson said Tuesday. “The investigation is still continuing. So far, we believe the shooting is accidental.
“We want to be sure we are doing the right thing,” he said. “We’ve got four years to charge someone with a felony, and there’s no sense in jumping to conclusions within 48 hours.”
Lookout Mountain Judicial Circuit District Attorney Herbert “Buzz” Franklin on Tuesday said he did not want to speculate about the outcome of the case or any potential charges
“We don’t want to say what might happen,” Franklin said. “We want to let people know what does happen.”
“I would say that any charges, if there are charges, they would be after the funeral out of respect for the family,” Wilson said. “They’re not going anywhere.”
Family members could not be reached Tuesday
- [S142] Newspaper Article, Walker County Messenger (LaFayette, GA), 25 Jun 2003.
No charges expected in teen shooting case
Walker County Sheriff’s Department Maj. Hill Morrison says no charges will be filed in a Rossville accidental shooting.
Last month while staying at their grandfather’s house, Rossville teen Steven Ray Woody died after his brother accidentally shot him with a 12-gauge shotgun.
Walker Juvenile Court Judge F. Bryant Henry ruled the shooting was accidental before passing matters over to the Walker Department of Family and Children’s Services, Morrison said
- [S142] Newspaper Article, Walker County Messenger (LaFayette, GA), 19 May 2003.
Teen's shooting refocuses attention on gun safet | Loca
by Eric Beaver
The fatal shooting of a 13-year-old Walker County boy by his twin brother Sunday is sharpening the county’s focus on gun safety.
Walker County authorities were dispatched about 3:15 p.m. Sunday to 215 Lytle Road, in Fairview, where they found Steven Ray Woody injured from a shotgun blast, Walker Sheriff Steve Wilson said. Deputies found the teen lying on the couch with injuries to his neck and jaw. He was transported by ambulance to Hutcheson Medical Center where he was pronounced dead, he said.
Investigators believe Woody’s twin brother, whose name was not released Monday morning, accidentally shot his brother with their grandfather’s 12-gauge shotgun, he said.
Wilson said he recalls four or five incidents involving guns and minors during his tenure as sheriff, but Woody is the first fatality in such a case.
Wilson said he plans to meet with local school boards to implement the Eddie Eagle gun safety program offered by the National Rifle Association, which is offered to students in elementary schools.
The investigation is still open, but investigators believe evidence so far bolsters the theory that the shooting was accidental, Wilson said. Based on evidence gathered thus far, authorities do not expect to file any charges in the case.
The boys did not have a history of hostility, he said.
The gun was loaded and in the living room where the boys were staying by themselves for the afternoon. They lived with their mother on nearby East Garden Farm Road and attended sixth grade at Rossville Middle School. Their father resides in Hixson, Tenn.
The grandfather told authorities he had removed the gun from a secure location recently because he suspected prowlers were skulking about his property, he said.
Woody’s body was moved to Atlanta for an autopsy in accordance with Georgia law that requires a review by a Child Fatality Review Board, Wilson said. The board is made up of representatives from the Lookout Mountain Judicial Circuit District Attorney’s Office, Department of Family and Children Services, Walker Coroner’s Office, Sheriff’s Department and the Georgia Bureau of Investigation.
The sheriff said the Sheriff’s Department also distributes free gun locks to anyone who needs one. For more information about the free service, contact the Sheriff’s Department at (706) 638-1909
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