On a Saturday evening, July 1, 2017, in the Burning Springs area of Wirt County, West Virginia, a violent encounter left 45-year-old Randall Leon Lockhart dead. The male victim sustained multiple gunshot wounds at a residence located on Little Kanawha Parkway, adjacent to the Burning Springs Oil and Gas Park. The shooting was reported to authorities at approximately 5:00 p.m.
State police responded to the scene and began an investigation into the fatal shooting. The individual who shot Lockhart was identified in some reports as Bill Sampson. He and his family alleged that Lockhart, who had a criminal record and was recently released from prison, had made multiple threats against them. These threats had reportedly been communicated to law enforcement prior to the deadly incident. On the day of the shooting, Sampson claimed he felt threatened by Lockhart, leading to the gunfire.
Following the incident, the alleged shooter cooperated with the ongoing police investigation.
Despite the fatality, no immediate charges were filed. The Wirt County prosecutor reviewed the initial findings and requested a full and thorough investigation before making a decision on whether to pursue any arrests or criminal charges.
The aftermath of the shooting was marked by conflicting narratives from the families involved. Lockhart's family disputed the shooter's account of events, suggesting there were other circumstances that led to his death. One of his daughters questioned the shooter's version of the story, pointing out that the property where the shooting occurred did not belong to the Sampsons. A former partner of Lockhart's described the event as a "horrifying massacre" and suggested that multiple individuals with criminal histories were involved. The investigation continued as authorities worked to piece together the events that transpired, leaving the question of whether Randall Lockhart was armed at the time of the confrontation unanswered in initial reports.
