NATIONAL PARK SERVICE

MORNING REPORT

BLACKBERRY EDITION

Wednesday, August 24, 2005

INCIDENTS

Blue Ridge Parkway

Attempted Homicide Culminates in Suicide of Assailant

On Sunday, August 21st, L.F., 57, of Forest, Virginia, beat his wife at their residence, took their two children against their will, and drove to Lynchburg, Virginia, where he shot a man who was allegedly having an affair with his wife. L.F. then telephoned his sister, telling her that he had hurt the children and that he was going to the Peaks of Otter on the Blue Ridge Parkway. L.F.'s vehicle was found in the Peaks of Otter Lodge parking lot. Ranger Zeph Cunningham responded with three Virginia State Police troopers. They checked the lodge and immediate area, but did not find L.F. They then began a sweep of the Abbott Lake trail. A young girl contacted Cunningham and informed him that a man was lying on the ground by the trail with a "nail hole in his stomach." Cunningham and the troopers then regrouped and developed a plan to tactically approach the site described by the girl. When they came to a point approximately 100 yards from the trail, they stopped to view the area ahead. They heard a single gunshot ahead of them from the trail. The officers then began to shout verbal commands, but received no response. There were no further shots. They found L.F. on the edge of the trail with an apparent gunshot wound to the head and a bullet wound to the abdomen. He had a .38 caliber pistol in his hand. L.F. was pronounced dead at the scene. The two children were found safe at another residence in Lynchburg. The wife and the man who was shot are expected to survive. No shots were fired by any law enforcement officers. It was later learned that L.F. had shot the man in Lynchburg with a .22 caliber pistol. They then fought over the pistol. The victim ultimately gained control and shot L.F. one time in the chest or abdomen. The .22 pistol was recovered a the residence in Lynchburg. Cunningham will remain as the lead investigator for the Park Service and coordinate with the Bedford County Sheriff's Department, Lynchburg PD, and the Campbell County Sheriff's Department. [Bruce W. Bytnar, Ridge District Ranger]

Glacier NP

Assault Conviction and Sentence

S.R. of Eagle Point, Oregon, recently pled guilty to charges of partner assault that stemmed from a incident that occurred in Apgar Campground on July 8th. Camp hosts reported that they were approached by a woman who claimed that her boyfriend had assaulted her. She then fled the area. Based on the report from the camp hosts, rangers located the woman and identified S.R. as her assailant. Through extensive interviews, rangers determined that the woman was the victim of a long history of abuse which had accelerated nightly prior to their arrival in Glacier. She eventually signed a complaint against S.R. and was transported to Flathead Regional Medical Center for treatment of her injuries. S.R. was fined $500 and sentenced to five weeks in jail, with credit for time served. S.R. has a lengthy criminal history, including prior convictions for assault, drug possession, violating a restraining order, and contempt of court. The victim currently has a restraining order against S.R. through Flathead County, Montana. She has credited rangers for helping her to escape her abusive situation. Ranger Steve Dodd was the primary case agent. [Patrick Suddath, West Lakes District Ranger]

Blue Ridge Parkway

Fatal Motorcycle Accident

On August 19th, R.J., 56, of Stafford, Virginia was headed southbound on his motorcycle on the parkway. He entered a curve at mile post 19.5, lost control of the bike, and went off the right hand road edge onto a turf shoulder. The motorcycle fishtailed and came down on top of R.J., resulting in a severe skull fracture and other internal injuries. R.J.'s heart stopped while in the ambulance en route to a helispot to be airlifted. He was pronounced dead upon arrival at the hospital. There is no indication of high speed at this time. Ranger Vince Clark is the assigned investigator for the Park Service. [Bruce W. Bytnar, Ridge District Ranger]

FIRE MANAGEMENT

NIFC remains at PL 3. The big Blossom and Clear Red Complexes were both fully contained yesterday. There are 222 crews in the field at present.

Individual fire entries for today for the National Park Service can be obtained at HYPERLINK "http://www.nps.gov/fire/news" http://www.nps.gov/fire/news . The full NIFC Incident Management Situation Report for today can be obtained at HYPERLINK "http://www.nifc.gov/news/sitreprt.pdf" http://www.nifc.gov/news/sitreprt.pdf.

OPERATIONAL NOTES

Nothing today.

PARKS AND PEOPLE

Nothing today.

JOBS

Nothing today.

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Prepared by Visitor and Resource Protection, WASO, with the cooperation and support of Delaware Water Gap NRA.

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