CHARLESTON — The State Supreme Court has rejected another attempt by a Preston County man to get out of prison.
Robert Watring, 39, of Kingwood, was convicted in 2015 of two counts of wanton endangerment with a firearm and one count of malicious assault.
In 2016, his attorney asked then Preston Circuit Court Judge Lawrance Miller Jr. to order a new trial because photos taken of the victim by police were not provided the defense before trial. The photos showed red marks on the victim’s neck and her broken glasses. The prosecution did not introduce them at trial.
Miller denied the motion for a new trial, and the State Supreme Court upheld his ruling. The most recent appeal is an amended version of the earlier request for a writ of habeas corpus, again based on the photos. It says their suppression violated his right to a fair trial. The state court again upheld Miller’s ruling.
In the earlier ruling, the court said the photos seemed consistent with the prosecution’s case and wouldn’t have helped Watring. Watring also argued in the amended appeal that he had ineffective counsel at trial. Again, the state court found against him in its March 15 decision.
According to court documents, Watring went to the home of a woman he knew in August 2014.
He, “pointed a .22 caliber youth rifle at the victim’s head. Petitioner reportedly told the victim he was ‘going to put her to sleep’ and then pointed the rifle at her chest,” according to the appeal. Watring also choked the woman and threatened her.
When neighbors called someone to help the woman, Watring also pointed the rifle at the man who came to help, the documents said.
Watring’s next parole hearing will be May 18. Without early release, his projected release date from prison is Nov. 8, 2024, according to the State Division of Prisons website.
