BUCKHANNNON – A Buckhannon man was recently arrested on multiple charges after allegedly pointing a gun at a family member while she was sleeping.
Joseph Haislip, 28, was arrested Friday for domestic assault, a misdemeanor; being a person prohibited from possessing firearms, a misdemeanor; brandishing a deadly weapon, a misdemeanor; and wanton endangerment involving a firearm, a felony.
According to the criminal complaint in the Upshur County Magistrate Clerk’s Office filed by investigating officer Patrolman C.G. Cope with the Buckhannon Police Department, on Friday, on July 31, members of the Buckhannon Police Department received a call in reference to a domestic dispute involving a firearm that occurred on Rustic Drive.
That complaint says that according to information from the E911 Upshur County Communication Center, a female caller reported Haislip had allegedly pointed a firearm at her, and that she was his family member. The caller stated she left the door open and the screen door unlocked and had fallen asleep on the couch when she heard someone come in. According to the report, when the victim woke up, Haislip was allegedly holding a handgun about one foot from her head.
The file says Haislip then allegedly began yelling about people talking about him and conspiring against him.
She described the firearm as a small handgun that was approximately five inches in length and dark in color. According to the report, the victim also said Haislip pulled a gun on his brother and confronted him last week after his brother “made a comment to him in passing.” Haislip allegedly made threats of retaliation against family members in the past, the file says.
Cope responded to the area of the Poe Bridge on Marion Street with Sgt. William Courtney. About five minutes after the initial call came in, Courtney and Cope spotted a male in dark clothing walking across the Poe Bridge from Vicksburg Road. As the subject got closer, Courtney identified him as Haislip.
Then, Courtney began to a frisk Haislip for weapons based on the information they received from the caller. During the frisk, Courtney allegedly located a fully loaded magazine in his right, front pocket and a small Taurus G2C 9-mm handgun on his back, inside his waistband, the file states.
Cope secured the firearm from Haislip’s waistband and cleared the weapon to render it safe. According to the report, the firearm was loaded with a full magazine and an additional round in the chamber.
Bail was set at $20,000 for domestic assault, $10,000 for being a person prohibited from possessing firearms, $10,000 for brandishing deadly weapon and $50,000 for wanton endangerment involving a firearm.
The possible penalty for a conviction of domestic assault is confinement in jail for not more than six months, a fine of not more than $100 or both. The possible penalty for being a person prohibited from possessing firearms is a fine of not less than $100 nor more than $1,000 or confinement in the jail for not less than 90 days nor more than a year or both. The possible penalty for brandishing a deadly weapon is confinement in jail for not less than 90 days nor more than one year, a fine of not less than $50 nor more than $1,000 or both.
Finally, the possible penalty for a conviction of wanton endangerment involving a firearm is confinement in the penitentiary for a definite term of not less than one year nor more than five years, or in the discretion of the court, confinement in the county jail for not more than one year; a fine of not less than $250 nor more than $2,500; or both.
