On a Sunday afternoon in Williamstown, West Virginia, emergency services received a distressing call about a nail gun accident that had left two men injured. However, upon arrival at the Sunshine Mountain Road residence on February 28, 2021, deputies from the Wood County Sheriff's Department discovered a grim reality that was far from an accidental mishap. The two men were not victims of a malfunctioning tool but had suffered from gunshot wounds.
One of the victims was 26-year-old Beau Michael Wasmer, a White/Caucasian male. The other was his fianc e's father, Harold Dennison, who was 62. Harold Dennison was pronounced dead at the scene, while Beau Wasmer was rushed to Marietta Memorial Hospital, where he succumbed to his injuries shortly after arrival. The initial report of a nail gun explosion was quickly determined to be a fabrication.
The investigation swiftly focused on Hillary Paige Dennison, who was Wasmer's fianc e and Harold Dennison's daughter.
Faced with the evidence, she admitted to detectives that she had intentionally fired a gun at her father and that the act had resulted in the deaths of both men. She was subsequently arrested and charged with two counts of murder.
In the course of the legal proceedings, Hillary Dennison pleaded guilty to the first-degree murder of her father and the second-degree murder of her fianc , Beau Wasmer. The motive for the tragic event remained somewhat unclear, though it was suggested that she was upset with her father over family matters. During her sentencing, Dennison spoke at length about past traumas, including domestic and drug abuse, as contributing factors to her actions. Ultimately, she was sentenced to life in prison with the possibility of parole after 15 years for the murder of her father, and an additional 40 years for the murder of her husband, with the sentences to be served consecutively.
