Eugene Crum, 59, was serving as sheriff of Mingo County when he was shot and killed in downtown Williamson, West Virginia, on April 3, 2013. Crum had taken office in January after years in local law enforcement and the court system and had been publicly identified with an aggressive anti-drug effort known as Operation Zero Tolerance. Around noon he was sitting in his official vehicle near the Mingo County Courthouse at a spot where he often took lunch. Witnesses and investigators say a man approached the vehicle and opened fire at close range; Crum suffered fatal gunshot wounds, including to the head, and died at the scene.

Police quickly identified Tennis Melvin Maynard of the Delbarton area as the suspect. Maynard fled by vehicle, crashed during a pursuit, and was shot and wounded by a pursuing deputy after allegedly pointing a handgun at the deputy. A .40-caliber Glock was recovered. A Mingo County grand jury later indicted Maynard on first-degree murder, attempted first-degree murder and a felony fleeing-related charge; federal prosecutors also returned a 10-count firearms-related indictment. Questions about Maynard’s mental health grew central to the case, and a judge later found him incompetent to stand trial and ordered his commitment to a state psychiatric hospital, leaving the murder charge unresolved in criminal court.

Are there readers who remember Sheriff Crum’s work in Mingo County or who have information about the April 3, 2013 shooting?