On Monday, August 3, 2026, during the early morning hours, deputies responded to the Macfarlan area of Ritchie County, West Virginia, regarding a suspicious death, according to a press release from the department.

Deputies from the Ritchie County Sheriff’s Office, along with members of the West Virginia State Police, arrived on scene and immediately began an investigation.

“At this time, the cause of death remains undetermined, and the investigation is ongoing,” the press release said.

The identity of the deceased has not been released.

The sheriff’s department said further updates will be made when the information becomes available, according to the press release.

Anyone with information related to this investigation is encouraged to contact the Ritchie County Sheriff’s Office at 304-643-2262.

According to a release from Vienna Police Chief Josh Cole, Ashton Elschlager, 20, of Walker is in custody at the Wood County Holding Center and Jacob Thomas, 19, of Waverly is being held at the Washington County Jail.

Elschlager is being held on a $300,000 cash bond, according to magistrate records. Thomas is being held without bond on a fugitive from justice warrant, according to the Washington County Jail website.

Officers responded around 8:14 p.m. Sunday to the 100 block of Grand Central Avenue for a report of shots fired involving two northbound vehicles, the release said. The preliminary investigation determined occupants of both vehicles exchanged gunfire.

Cole said the individuals were known to each other and the incident arose out of an ongoing dispute.

“It’s definitely not a random road rage incident,” he said.

Elschlager was charged last week with brandishing a deadly weapon, an incident Cole said involved a relative of Thomas. Magistrate records show Elschlager was also charged with obstruction and persons prohibited from possessing firearms counts in that instance and was released on a $5,000 bond.

Elschlager and a woman in his car “sustained serious life-threatening injuries,” the release said. Both were taken to WVU Medicine Camden Clark Medical Center. While Elschlager has since been released and is at the holding center, the woman was taken to WVU Medicine Ruby Memorial Hospital in Morgantown for additional treatment, Cole said.

Her name was not included in the release.

The release said Elschlager was identified as one of the individuals involved in the exchange of gunfire, while witness information identified the second shooter as Thomas.

Thomas fled the scene while continuing north on Grand Central, the release said. With assistance from the Wood County Sheriff’s Office, his vehicle was observed crossing the Williamstown Bridge. That information was relayed to the Washington County Sheriff’s Office, whose deputies stopped the vehicle on Third Street in Marietta, Sheriff Mark Warden said.

“We held them until the Vienna Police Department could come over and do their interviews,” he said.

After interviewing both suspects and other witnesses, officers determined Elschlager and Thomas “recklessly exchanged gunfire while traveling on a public roadway, placing numerous motorists and bystanders at risk of serious injury or death,” the release said.

There were two other people in the vehicle with Elschlager, a driver and a juvenile, neither of whom has been charged in relation to the incident, Cole said.

The investigation is ongoing, and the Vienna Police Department asked anyone with additional information to contact its office.

Vienna Police thanked the Wood and Washington County sheriff’s offices, Parkersburg and Williamstown police departments and West Virginia State Police for their assistance.

“This case highlights the value of strong communication and cooperation between our law enforcement agencies,” the release said.

Evan Bevins can be reached at ebevins@newsandsentinel.com.

The training involved Wood County Schools, the Parkersburg Police Department and WVU Medicine Camden Clark Emergency Medical Services, along with other local law enforcement and first responders.

Jeremy Bell, director of safety and security for Wood County Schools, said the district conducts the training annually.

“We do this every year to practice the worst-case scenario in our schools,” Bell said. “I don’t think a lot of people know that we do this, but it is live training for them.”

The exercises allowed police officers and EMS personnel to practice entering a school, locate simulated victims, provide medical care and coordinate their response. Police officers and EMS personnel also volunteered to portray victims during the scenarios.

Bell said the realistic exercises can help responders identify issues that may not become apparent during classroom instruction or tabletop discussions.

“It opens up a lot of our first responders’ eyes in an event like this,” Bell said. “If something does happen, we’re prepared for it.”

Personnel from the Wood County Sheriff’s Office, Parkersburg Police Department and Vienna Police Department were involved in or scheduled to participate in the training during the week, Bell said.

He thanked the agencies and WVU Medicine Camden Clark EMS for committing personnel and resources to the exercises.

“This is good training for literally everybody,” Bell said.

Sean Marshall, director of EMS for WVU Medicine Camden Clark, said the exercise was designed as an active shooter and mass casualty incident drill involving EMS and the Parkersburg Police Department’s task force.

Marshall said the agencies had wanted to conduct integrated training for some time and organizers hope to include area fire departments in future exercises.

“The whole purpose behind this is for us to run through these drills, build up our staff’s confidence and make sure they know what they need to do in these types of situations,” he said.

The exercise also provided hands-on experience for students who recently completed testing through the Camden Clark EMS training center. Marshall said they were the first class in the center’s history to participate in a drill of that scale.

“They learn this stuff in a classroom setting, but they don’t physically get to actually do it,” Marshall said. “They got both worlds on this one.”

Marshall said he hopes students in future classes will have similar opportunities.

The training focused not only on the responsibilities of each agency but also on communication and coordination between responders. During a real emergency, Marshall said, police, EMS and other agencies would have to operate together in a fast-moving and potentially dangerous environment.

“This was a great opportunity for all of our services to get together and train together, because if this ever did happen, we’re all going to be working together,” Marshall said. “If we train together, then during these situations, we’re going to be more effective, we’re going to work better, and it’s going to come with better outcomes for everybody.”

Marshall also said for those interested in training through WVU Medicine Camden Clark EMS to keep an eye on their social media accounts for applications for the next rotation of training.

Staff Reporter Sophie Wheeler contributed to this article.

Officer Andrew Schaad said the driver of a Toyota Corolla reported swerving to avoid a parked vehicle near 1002 Camden Ave. The driver then lost control, struck an embankment and a mailbox and became airborne before hitting the dump truck.

The vehicle came to rest near the truck following the collision, Schaad said.

The driver of the vehicle was reportedly uninjured and able to walk from the car following the crash.

No information was available regarding possible citations. The crash remains under investigation.

Lance Parks, a physician who previously worked at J.W. Ruby Memorial Hospital, is charged with eight misdemeanors of criminal invasion of privacy and the felony of distribution and exhibition of computer-generated child pornography, according to a joint statement from the Morgantown Police Department and the Monongalia Prosecuting Attorney Gabrielle Mucciola. Parks was arrested Friday in Wood County, the joint statement said. Details on the arrest were unavailable.

Employees at Ruby Memorial in Morgantown on June 26 discovered a hidden recording device under a sink in a staff restroom. Police were immediately notified and identified Parks as the person who put the device in the restroom, an earlier statement said.

The device contained videos of eight hospital employees who were unknowingly recorded while partially nude, the statement said.

A second recording device was found in a toilet located in a non-public staff restroom at Ruby Memorial after reports of a clogged pipe, the statement said. The second recording device, which contained no images or other media, also was turned over to police.

Investigators searched Parks’ residence on June 26 and seized computers and digital storage devices and have found files containing images of juvenile females that appear to have been downloaded from publicly available social media and photo-sharing websites.

“Investigators located numerous computer-generated images in which artificial intelligence had been used to manipulate the original photographs so that the depicted juveniles appeared to be fully nude,” the statement said. “Detectives are continuing to examine the seized electronic devices to determine the full scope of any conduct and to identify any and all victims.”

The investigation remains active, according to Morgantown Police and the prosecuting attorney.

A warrant for Parks’ arrest was issued on July 2. Bond was set at $100,000 on all charges, which has been posted, according to Magistrate Court records.

A preliminary hearing on the felony was scheduled for July 20 before Magistrate William A. Tennant in Monongalia County.

Parkersburg Police responded around 11 a.m. to a shooting in the 500 block of Myrtle Street. Police Capt. R.L. Koher said the victim was taken to WVU Medicine Camden Clark Medical Center for treatment, where his condition was not immediately available. He remained hospitalized Friday evening.

The person accused of firing the shot was taken into custody, Koher said. Police said there was no ongoing danger to the public.

On Friday evening, the department posted on its Facebook page that no charges had been filed and further investigation was needed to gather all the facts.

“The incident does appear to be isolated to this residence, and the shooter and the individual who was shot were acquaintances,” the post said.

Police asked anyone with information related to the investigation to contact Detective Eichhorn at 304-424-8539.

That, Monongalia County Sheriff Todd Forbes said recently, is the extent of the function and use of the Flock Safety automated license plate reader cameras in Monongalia County.

In November, the Monongalia County Commission approved Forbes’ request to use up to $180,000 in directly allocated opioid settlement funds over three years to place as many as 20 of the cameras at locations across the county. Just as it has in political jurisdictions across the country, the county’s decision to implement the controversial automated cameras has come under increased scrutiny of late.

A change.org petition to stop the county’s use of Flock cameras has garnered more than 1,400 signatures.

Ten or so individuals showed up at the July 1 commission meeting to voice their concerns in person. Those concerns include infringements on civil liberties, vulnerabilities within the hardware and software utilized by the cameras, the potential for abuse within and between agencies, the collection of personal data by a private company, the overall “Big Brother” nature of automated surveillance and the county’s use of opioid settlement money to finance the installation of the cameras.

Justin Musser, the IT administrator for West Virginia University’s PRT system, first brought his concerns about the Flock agreement to the commission late last year. He returned Wednesday to say he’s disappointed with the amount of information being shared publicly about what data is being collected, how it’s being used and who it’s being shared with.

“The same people that have said throughout this whole process that if you have nothing to hide, you don’t have anything to worry about, have definitely been pretty good at hiding for the past couple months when it comes to getting any answers about anything related to this project,” Musser said, adding, “If you want your constituents to trust what you are giving them in terms of safety with a camera system, they need to be able to trust you, that you’re handling their data safely.”

The commission also heard from Paige Reiring, the organizer behind Wednesday’s turnout. She said spending $180,000 in opioid settlement funds on surveillance cameras is “an obvious misuse.”

“These ALPRs create a de facto dragnet that tracks and logs the movements of vehicles and individuals without law enforcement needing to obtain a warrant, in violation of the Fourth Amendment,” Reiring said, citing ACLU statistics indicating less than 1% of vehicles scanned by ALPRs are connected to crime, and one in 10 plates scanned are misread, leading to unwarranted and potentially dangerous interactions between law enforcement and citizens.

“I think we need to think about what kind of society that we’re creating,” Theodore Webb added. “We see a context here. There’s more and more surveillance, more and more surveillance. There’s all this data that’s being collected. You guys are intelligent folks. I’m sure you’re aware of all this data that’s being collected. Most of it, really, without people’s awareness and without their consent. What’s the point? … Just think about what can be done with this data. There are serious consequences. If you just read ‘1984.’ It’s common sense. It’s just common sense. We’re building something that the worst dictators in history would have been thrilled to have. It’s just not a good idea.”

Both Forbes and members of the commission pushed back on several of the talking points.

In terms of the funding, the commissioners noted, one, that opioid settlement funds are not tax dollars, but money collected from opioid manufacturers and distributors through legal action; and, two, law enforcement initiatives to address the flow of illicit drugs is an approved use of the funds per the Memorandum of Understanding created by the West Virginia First Foundation.

Commissioner Jeff Arnett said that of the opioid settlement funds spent thus far, 96% has supported treatment and prevention efforts while 4% has been used to finance placement of the cameras.

It was also explained that the cameras, as implemented in Monongalia County, are not surveillance cameras fishing for offenses, but “finding cameras” that are flagging specific plates entered into the system in connection with criminal investigations, active warrants, Amber alerts and Silver alerts.

“I want it very clear. The cameras in Monongalia County do not have facial recognition. They do not have surveillance. They do not follow children in parks. They do not stalk individuals. They are on public roads to only capture license plates,” Commission President Tom Bloom said.

Bloom later said he believes misinformation and instances cherrypicked from other locations are “scare tactics” being used to create a “mob mentality,” while nobody beyond Musser has reached out to the commission or the sheriff to have their concerns addressed.

According to information provided to The Dominion Post, two cameras recently identified in social media posts have already been damaged or disabled.

Forbes said the amount of data collected by the Flock cameras is “almost laughable” in comparison to the amount and type of data being collected and shared by cellphones.

He went on to say that there are cameras with facial recognition software being utilized within the county, but they are not the county’s Flock cameras.

According to Forbes, regular audits of the system provide detailed logs of who is accessing it and what information is being collected. Those audits, he said, are shared with the commission.

“We have a society where we don’t have to agree, but this decision was made for the betterment of the community. We wouldn’t be doing it if I didn’t think this made our county safer,” he said.

“An example I will give is, a couple weeks ago, a triple murder was committed in Ohio, and approximately six hours later those people in that car were in our county, and we made an arrest. I would like anybody to stand up to the family of those victims and say, ‘Flock cameras are bad.’ I don’t think they will agree with that. That’s the purpose and the spirit that we have for those cameras, and that’s how they will be used as long as I’m overseeing that.”