CLARKSBURG, W.Va. (WBOY) — Looking back on 2024, north central West Virginia had some big headlines, from hard news like deadly accidents and crime to more light-hearted stories involving state celebrities and entertainment.
An Elkins Police officer was found dead in his police cruiser with a gunshot wound off U.S. Route 33 in Randolph County in June. Elkins Police Chief T.C. Bennett released a statement the following day confirming that the officer was Patrolman First Class Ramon Goux and that he had taken his own life. The statement said in part “Ramon, We love you and we will miss you every day! Rest easy brother, we’ve got it from here.”
In October 2024, Teays Valley native Mor Ilderton turned four chairs on the Blind Auditions round of “The Voice” with a cover of “Coal” by Dylan Gossett. The 20-year-old joined Team Bublé on the show after revealing the audition was his first time ever performing in front of a live audience. Ilderton
left The Voice after being stolen by coach Gwen Stefani during the Knockouts but has since released new music.
Not every top headline has to be hard news. The 10th most viewed story of 2024 was a video of Charleston, West Virginia native Jennifer Garner and her mother Pat, who still lives in Charleston, making their go-to potluck recipe: Barbara’s blackberry cobbler. Garner spends time during the Today Show segment reminiscing on memories of growing up in West Virginia and explaining the impact that her mother has had on her life.
In August of 2024, 12 News highlighted a unique home that was for sale in West Virginia’s Eastern Panhandle that went viral. The double-wide trailer had some unique features creating a “one-of-a-kind real estate experience,” the most notable being an indoor pool. The home was originally listed at $175,000 and is no longer for sale.
In January of 2024, the U.S. Department of Justice announced that 82 people from West Virginia, Virginia and Maryland were indicted by a grand jury for their alleged roles in a drug trafficking ring in West Virginia’s Eastern Panhandle. At the time of publication, 11 of the 82 suspects were still at large.
In August 2024, the West Virginia State Police announced that it was looking for a hiker from Virginia named Shayne Wilson who had been missing since June. Wilson was believed to have been hiking the Allegheny Trail, which extends from West Virginia’s Pennsylvania border in Preston County to West Virginia’s Virginia border in Monroe County. His mother filed a missing persons report on Aug. 2, and Wilson was found unharmed just days later.
Ryan Lantz, a teacher and coach at Liberty High School in Harrison County, died after being hit by a vehicle in the school’s parking lot in February 2024. An outpouring of support from the community followed with a
candlelit vigil and
memorial services , and a
GoFundMe for his funeral expenses raised more than $14,000 . In June, he was also
honored at the National Memorial to Fallen Educators in Kansas .
A
body found in a shallow grave near Little Indian Creek Road in Monongalia in November was identified as Kimberly Osborne in December.
She had been missing since May . She was identified after extensive investigation and the case was ruled a homicide. After her remains were identified,
Joseph Nevera was arrested and charged with murder in the case . A
criminal complaint against him said that he had threatened Osborne at the shallow grave where she was later buried about a month before her disappearance.
West Virginia native and 1984 all-around gymnastics Olympic gold medalist Mary Lou Retton addressed a health scare she experienced in 2023 during an interview in May 2024.
Retton was hospitalized in an intensive care unit for several weeks with a rare form of pneumonia , and
a crowdfund supporting her raised more than $200,000 within 24 hours . In the May interview, Retton explained why she did not have insurance and could not pay for the medical bills on her own, saying in part “You’re welcome to your opinion, but you weren’t in that situation.”
In October 2024, the U.S. Marshals Service requested the public’s help locating fugitive Michael Daryl Long Jr. Long, who was wanted on charges of possession with intent to distribute meth and conspiracy to commit malicious assault on a correctional employee, among other crimes. Long, who also goes by the name “Lil’ Mike,” has a long history of drug possession, fleeing from law enforcement and resisting arrest.
West Virginians were curious about a bright light spotted across the state and East Coast on Sept. 10, 2024. The light, which was seen by 12 News viewers across north central West Virginia, was not a comet but a rocket launched by SpaceX from the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida. The launch was part of the Polaris Dawn mission, which was the first-ever commercial spacewalk.
The top 12 News story of 2024 was something that always tends to take the internet by storm: A cute, fuzzy animal. An Allegheny woodrat, which is considered a “species of concern” by the National Park Service due to their declining population, was caught on a trail cam in the Monongahela National Forest in April 2024. The large, mouse-like rodent was believed to be locally extinct until it was spotted in Harpers Ferry, West Virginia in 2022. There are an estimated 100,000 Allegheny woodrats left in the wild nationwide.
