Bath Township man on trial for gun crimes

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XENIA — The trial for a Bath Township man accused of threatening his daughter and granddaughter with a gun began Monday in Greene County Common Pleas Court.

Thomas West, 56, is on trial under the supervision of Judge Stephen Wolaver for two counts of felonious assault (both with firearms specifications, which both carry three years of mandatory prison time), two counts of having weapons while under disability and one count of tampering with evidence. The indictment against West also contains a forfeiture specification for two weapons allegedly used during the incident, a revolver and a shotgun.

According to West’s daughter’s testimony, back in February, after a run-in between her and her father earlier in the day, he retrieved a shotgun, slammed it on the kitchen table and returned to his room in the house. West’s daughter testified that she took the gun and hid it, because she knew “something was going to happen.”

She later testified that West returned and demanded she return the shotgun.

“I’m going to count to five, and if you don’t give me my [expletive] shotgun, bullets are going to start flying,” she recalled him saying. She then said he shot her laptop with a handgun, threatened her child and put the handgun to her head.

During testimony Monday, the court also heard from emergency dispatchers who took a 911 call from the incident and Greene County Sheriff’s Office deputies who responded to the scene.

West was sentenced in 2001 to 17 months in prison for assaulting a peace officer, was sentenced in 1986 on a forgery charge and in 1982 for a breaking and entering charge, according to online court records.

West
http://aimmedianetwork.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/50/2015/11/web1_west.jpgWest

By Nathan Pilling

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Reach Nathan Pilling at 937-502-4498 or on Twitter @XDGNatePilling.

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