Wheeling Police Disclose Findings From Wheeling Island Shooting
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WHEELING — City police say Tyrone Raymont Thompson was driving his vehicle in an aggressive manner on Wheeling Island on March 19, which caused a man to gesture at him from the sidewalk. Thompson stopped his vehicle and a fight ensued; Thompson ended up dead from two gunshot wounds.
Police filed no charges in the shooting, as the man who pulled the trigger claimed self-defense. An Ohio County grand jury this week agreed with that assessment and found no probable cause to indict the shooter.
On Thursday, the Wheeling Police Department released its findings from a seven-week investigation into Thompson's death.
According to police, at 7:27 p.m. Saturday, March 19, officers responded to two 911 calls in the 100 block of South Huron Street on Wheeling Island, where officers met with one of the callers who told police he shot a man in self-defense. The shooter was initially detained provided a statement. Later that evening, he was released from police custody.
Police said Thompson, 35, suffered from multiple gunshot wounds. He was transported to WVU Medicine Wheeling Hospital where he later died. The West Virginia Medical Examiner's Office determined two gunshot wounds in Thompson's upper torso as the cause of death.
Investigators determined, through witness accounts, that Thompson was driving a vehicle in an aggressive manner on South Huron Street on March 19. During that time, the shooter - The Intelligencer will not release his name since he was not charged - made a gesture to Thompson from the sidewalk. Thompson then stopped his car in the 100 block of South Huron Street and approached the shooter on the sidewalk, police said, where a fight ensued.
As the fight continued, the shooter ended up on his back, and then fired three shots, two of them fatally wounding Thompson, according to investigators' findings. No outside video captured the altercation.
Physical evidence recovered from the scene, injuries noted on the deceased, witness accounts, and the shooter's injuries indicate the gunshots were fired at close proximity and were consistent with the physical altercation described by the shooter. An autopsy also confirmed Thompson was shot at close range.
Wheeling Police detectives spent several weeks investigating various online rumors, including an inaccurate social media posts suggesting six gunshots were fired. Police determined the video with the suspected six gunshots was captured an hour before the shooting happened and is unrelated to the actual incident.
Police also determined there was no prior relationship between the shooter and Thompson. The shooter was legally carrying the firearm.
The facts developed in the months-long investigation were brought before an Ohio County Grand Jury on May 9, 2022. After a full presentation of the investigation and a lengthy deliberation, members of the grand jury did not find probable cause to charge any crime against the shooter.