Man dead in Wolf Pen shooting

SISSONVILLE, W.Va. — A man was shot and killed in Kanawha County Tuesday afternoon, sheriff’s deputies said.

The shooting took place at around 2:45 p.m. outside of Smitty’s Auto Parts on Wolf Pen Drive in the Sissonville area.

Deputies say shooting took place near Smitty's Auto Parts.
Deputies say shooting took place near Smitty’s Auto Parts.

According to sheriff’s department spokesman Sgt. Brian Humphreys, the shooter said the victim, Tracy Stalnaker, 53, of Sissonville, was chasing him with a knife.

“If it’s self-defense from a lethal object, in this case a knife, then that’s justified,” Humphreys said. “But the question is always is that account accurate?”

The shooter is cooperating with deputies. No charges were initially filed.

Investigators are looking for answers to a number of questions in connection with the shooter’s account, Humphreys said.

“Could this have happened? How could this have happened? What else might have happened and is that a possibility?”

The Kanawha County Prosecutor’s Office is assisting with the investigation, Humphreys said.