ROWSBURG — Larry Dunham’s sister called 911 and told dispatchers he had a “suicide wish” moments before three Ashland County Sheriff deputies showed up to the scene and gunfire ensued.
“My brother, he had a brain injury,” the woman said. “And he had a brain bleed, OK?”
The 911 call came in at 7:55 p.m. on Aug. 5.
“He’s now sitting up at his house with two loaded guns in his lap,” she said. “… He has a suicide wish. So if you guys come in here with your lights and your noise, he’s going to kill himself and his wife, and try to take them, too. So I’m just telling you.”
Three Ashland County Sheriff’s Office (ACSO) deputies are now on paid administrative leave following their involvement in the Dunham shooting that Saturday evening.
Dunham, 63, died from “multiple gunshot wounds,” according to an investigator with the Ashland County Coroner’s Office.
What happened?
An ACSO press release issued Sunday stated deputies attempted to talk to Dunham, who they found sitting in a lawn chair. As they approached, he threw his cellphone to the ground and “confronted deputies with deadly force.”
The deputies “used their service weapons and returned fire striking (Dunham),” the ACSO press release stated.
Jenny Taylor, an investigator with the Ashland County Coroner’s Office, said Dunham was pronounced dead at 8:21 p.m., 26 minutes after the 911 call. She determined the cause of death to be “multiple gunshot wounds.”
Details such as where on the body he was shot and how many times will be determined by an autopsy, she said.
When asked if drugs or alcohol were involved, Taylor said she did not know. She said a toxicology report would reveal those details.
According to Taylor, the autopsy and toxicology reports could take up to 12 weeks to be completed.
“All I can say is this gentleman was not necessarily thinking clearly, from all indications –from the information I was given,” Taylor said.
Chief Deputy David Blake declined to offer additional details about the shooting, including specifics on how Dunham allegedly used deadly force.
The case is being investigated by the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation.
When reached by email, a BCI spokesman declined to provide additional information.
A spotty call
Dunham’s sister told the dispatcher she approached her brother before making the call.
“I went up because I did not realize he had two loaded guns and a neighbor called me and said he was sitting around their fire ring with two loaded guns. So I went up, not realizing he still had these guns and he still had the (unintelligible),” she said.
The dispatcher asked her if Dunham’s wife knew about his state.
“I told his daughter and she’s supposed to be texting his wife. Because I’m terrified to go back up there,” she said.
The call was interrupted several times because of a spotty signal. The dispatcher could be heard repeating “hello?” multiple times, the caller seemingly not realizing he could not hear her.
At one point, she can be heard saying “whatever he was on ran out” before the call cut out again.
Taylor said she recovered prescription medications for treating hypertension, congestive heart failure, acid reflux and blood thinners. She said she didn’t recover drugs to treat depression or other mental ailments.
In a brief moment of clarity, she gave the dispatcher her phone number, though it is unclear if the dispatcher connected with her again following the initial call. It ended abruptly three minutes into the exchange.
Her number has been redacted from the call.