MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — The daughter of a Monongalia County man killed during the attempted execution of an arrest warrant insists his death could have been avoided.Crystal Hetrick, who lives in Texas, told MetroNews Darrel Hetrick, 82, was prohibited from having firearms as the result of a battery charge in June 2015.
“He shouldn’t have had a gun there to begin with. And, when the sheriff’s department is saying that they don’t know where he got the gun, that’s bull,” the daughter said.
According to Hetrick, her father hit her mother in June 2015. When he was in court in February 2016, he learned the police would remove firearms from his Price Hill Road home.
“Lots of people knew. The lawyer that was helping me, the sheriff talked to her and said he’s just a poor old man, a veteran trying to protect himself and they left him a pistol there. If that pistol wasn’t there, we wouldn’t be in that position right now,” she claimed.
In 911 audio released Wednesday from the Aug. 27 shooting, deputies told operators the elderly man was armed.
“We have male subject refusing to drop a gun out here at 63 Price Hill Road. He’s back in the house,” an unnamed deputy is heard saying.
The elder Hetrick was also accused of removing his wife from an assisted living facility during a more recent incident in which police were called.
“The day that he picked my mom up and took her home, he was not a threat to my mother. He just didn’t understand her condition and upset her a lot. I know he did hit her that time and that was a big issue for me. Any other time he’s never been threatening to her,” Crystal Hetrick continued.
In a previous interview with MetroNews affiliate WAJR AM, Monongalia County Sheriff Al Kisner said an arrest warrant was expedited by prosecutors the day Hetrick was shot.
“When this violation of protective order was obtained for him, there was concern that there was going to be another incident happen with his wife and if there was we would not be able to get there in time.”
Crystal Hetrick said the morning of the shooting her father had visited her mother at the medical facility where she was residing to bring her bills. According to her, he had been asked to leave.
An attempt had been made early in the day on Aug. 26 to serve Darrel Hetrick with the warrant according to Kisner. When he wasn’t home, Kisner said his deputies returned just after midnight Aug. 27.
During audio from that night, a deputy told 911 Hetrick had threatened them.
“We’ve announced ourselves several times. He’s completely aware of who we are. He says he will kill us,” he said.
But, according to Hetrick’s daughter, her father was hard of hearing and frequently worried people would break into his home.
“In my mind, I really don’t think he knew it was the police because I don’t know why he would react that way after they’ve been out to his house 3 or 4 times since all of this started and he’s never been anything but polite to them.”
The Monongalia County Sheriff’s Department Detective Division is conducting an internal review of the case to determine if any policies or procedures were violated.