On the evening of May 15, 1982, in Kenova, West Virginia, a decorated police captain's life was tragically cut short in the line of duty. George W. Myers, a 54-year-old Caucasian male and a 19-year veteran of the Kenova Police Department, was off duty when he heard a dispatch call about two men on motorcycles reportedly chasing a woman. Despite being out of uniform and in his personal vehicle, Captain Myers responded to the call.
He located the two men and stopped one of them. As Myers attempted to make an arrest, the situation escalated dramatically. The man he had stopped, identified as Gerald Wayne Hager, was armed with a. 32 caliber handgun and shot Captain Myers four times. Despite his grave injuries, Myers managed to return fire, wounding Hager. With the assistance of two other officers who arrived at the scene, the wounded suspect was taken into custody.
Captain Myers was rushed to a local hospital, but he succumbed to his injuries just minutes after his arrival.
In the aftermath of the shooting, Gerald Wayne Hager was arrested and subsequently stood trial. In December 1982, a jury found him guilty of first-degree murder, and he was sentenced to life in prison. However, the legal saga did not end there. On March 25, 1986, Hager's conviction was overturned by the Supreme Court of Appeals of West Virginia, adding a complex and unresolved chapter to the story of Captain Myers's death.
