Man faces jail on heels of Okla. term
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Recommend ThisBrill, charged in March stabbing, recently released after seven-year sentence
By Alex Bridges-abridges@nvdaily.com
WINCHESTER -- A West Virginia man charged in a March 19 stabbing in a city park finished serving a long prison term in Oklahoma just a month ago, authorities said Monday.
Christopher Michael Brill, 38, of Capon Bridge, is charged in Winchester General District Court with one count of malicious wounding. Court documents also indicate Brill has an address in the city.
Brill had been held on a $250,000 bond in the Northwestern Regional Adult Detention Center since his arrest last week. The commonwealth appealed the order in the lower court, which granted bond in Brill's case.
Judge John E. Wetsel Jr. held a hearing in Winchester Circuit Court on Monday on the commonwealth's motion, during which more information came to light about the reported stabbing and the defendant's recent stint in prison.
Authorities accused Brill with stabbing Wayne Mitchell several times with a knife during an altercation that took place in the early morning hours in a parking lot at University and Lowery drives in Jim Barnett Park.
Assistant Commonwealth's Attorney Jason Caccamo told Wetsel the alleged victim and several witnesses told police Brill punched Mitchell, who then swung back. Brill then stabbed Mitchell.
"The victim hit the ground ... Brill said 'this is why you got stabbed,'" Caccamo said, referring to witness statements to police.
The prosecutor told Wetsel the defendant recently finished serving a state prison term in Oklahoma. Online court records from that state show Brill served a seven-year sentence for a conviction of carrying a weapon, drugs or alcohol into a jail in 2001. That term ran consecutive to a sentence he already was serving for a previous conviction, information for which was not available in the online database.
Brill's attorney, William A. "Beau" Bassler, called into question the events leading up to the reported incident.
"There were two camps of cars ... really shady activity on the part of the two groups," Bassler said. "Two women came out of the cars barely dressed, if dressed at all."
Bassler argued the commonwealth's evidence did not rise to level needed to show his client committed malicious wounding.
Wetsel noted before making his decision the alleged incident involves a stabbing.
Bassler offered to call Brill's employer as well as the defendant's father to testify on his client's behalf. The attorney noted his client still pays child support for a 16-year-old daughter living in Oklahoma.
Attorneys told Wetsel the defendant was released from prison in Oklahoma about a month before the stabbing.
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