Published: October 11, 2007 02:14 pm         

Garrett man charged with murder

OAKLAND - Norris Wayne Rush, 51, Accident, was arrested Thursday and charged with first-degree murder in the shooting death of David Wayne Lancaster, 29, in December, an incident that had originally been determined by authorities to be an act of self defense.

After reviewing evidence in the case, State's Attorney Lisa Thayer Welch filed an affidavit and criminal information Thursday, resulting in the arrest warrant, the Office of the Garrett County Sheriff reported in a news release.

Rush was taken into custody at 10:30 a.m. at his home on Accident-Friendsville Road, the same dwelling where the shooting took place.

A spokeswoman at the Garrett District Court Commissioners on Thursday afternoon said Rush's bond was set by visiting Judge Paul Stakem at $50,000. At 7 p.m., Rush was still in the county's detention center.

Rush is also charged with using a handgun in a crime of violence and reckless endangerment, the latter because Billie Jo Zimmerman was in the vicinity of the shooting.

Zimmerman is described as a former girlfriend of Lancaster, according to Bertha Hale-Cooper, Lancaster's mother, who lives in Oakland. Though originally identified as being from Pennsylvania, Lancaster was living in Maryland at the time of his death, according to Hale-Cooper.

Police reports at the time of the death indicated that Rush, Zimmerman and Lancaster were in Rush's home during the early morning hours of Dec. 3, all extremely intoxicated, when Lancaster was said to have stuck a butcher knife into Rush's hand. Rush then reportedly shot a .22-caliber handgun three times at close range, striking Lancaster in the stomach and chest, killing him.

"This just came out of the blue this morning," Hale-Cooper said by phone Thursday afternoon. "Detective (J.D.) Murphy called me about 11 a.m. to tell me about the arrest."

Hale-Cooper has contended that the Maryland State Police, and not the office of the sheriff, should have investigated the case, because the shooter is the brother-in-law of Sheriff Gary Berkebile.

In May, Hale-Cooper, via her attorney Tom Dabney of Oakland, went successfully to circuit court to preserve evidence in the case.

The Times-News published a letter Oct. 2 from Hale-Cooper in which she questioned aspects of the investigation and the determination of self defense.

A letter to the editor from Berkebile published Oct. 9 responded to Hale-Cooper's comments. "If the state's attorney makes a determination that criminal charges against Mr. Rush will be prosecuted, he will be arrested as soon as possible. In the interest of justice, all parties involved in this tragedy deserve their day in court," Berkebile wrote.

"I am so grateful to the Cumberland Times for running my letter," Hale-Cooper said. "After it ran, that's when things began to happen."

Michael A. Sawyers can be reached at msawyers@times-news.com.