In the quiet of a summer evening in Sugar Hollow, Virginia, a long-simmering animosity erupted into deadly violence, claiming the life of Robert Batten. The son of James Batten, a well-known merchant at Mt. Fair, Robert was shot and killed around sunset on July 18, 1922, on a public road just outside the village of Mt. Fair, not far from Boonesville.
The fatal encounter was the culmination of ill feelings that had festered between him and another local young man.
The man identified as the shooter was 23-year-old Gilbert Via, the son of a farmer from near the Albemarle and Augusta county line. The dispute between the two men reportedly began the Saturday prior to the shooting, stemming from a quarrel involving their respective brothers, James Batten and Allen Via. Gilbert Via's intervention in that initial dispute is said to have angered Robert Batten. According to one account, the conflict escalated over a trivial 15-cent bet about who was the better shot. In the days leading up to the fatal confrontation, Batten had allegedly gone to the Via home on two occasions, causing damage to the house. On his last visit, the day before the shooting, he reportedly threatened to 'get' Gilbert Via.
On the evening of the shooting, Gilbert Via was returning home from a visit when he encountered Robert Batten in the road. Via claimed that Batten was advancing towards him with a pistol in hand. Stating that he acted in self-defense, Via raised his shotgun and fired, striking Batten in the chest and causing instant death. Following the incident, Gilbert Via, accompanied by his father, surrendered to the sheriff.
A preliminary hearing was held before a panel of five county magistrates. As a result of the hearing, Gilbert Via was charged with the murder of Robert Batten and was sent on to the next grand jury. His brother, Allen Via, was also charged with assault on Mrs. T. Batten in connection with the ongoing feud and was likewise sent on to the grand jury.
