D.C. Man Sentenced For Assaulting West Virginia Federal Park Police Officer
Saturday, January 11, 2025, 11:20 A.M. ET. 2 Minute Read, By Art Fletcher: Englebrook Independent News,
BECKLEY, W.VA.- On Wednesday, January 8, 2025, MacArthur Walker, Jr., 58, of Washington, D.C., appeared in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of West Virginia and was sentenced by Chief U.S. District Court Judge Frank W. Volk to 27 months in federal prison, immediately followed by three years of supervised release for his conviction of Assaulting, Resisting, or Impeading Certain Officers by Physical Force.
According to U.S. Attorney Will Thompson and charging documents filed with the district court, on May 4, 2024, Walker was operating a motor vehicle through the New River Gorge National Park area near Sandstone, West Virginia, when a National Park Police Officer conducted a traffic stop on Walker’s vehicle.
During The Search, Police Officer Finds A Handgun
   During the traffic stop, the Police Officer smelled the odor of marijuana, when questioned, a passenger in the vehicle told the Officer there was around 3.5 grams of marijuana in the vehicle. The passenger gave the marijuana to the Officer. The Officer told Walker to exit the vehicle and stand by the Officer’s police vehicle while the Officer conducted the search of Walker’s vehicle.
During the search, the Officer found a brown briefcase containing a loaded .38-caliber revolver, a holster, and.38-caliber ammunition. Following the Officer finding the firearm, Walker left the area of the police vehicle and approached the Officer.
When the Officer told him to turn around to be handcuffed, Walker drew back his fist and struck the left side of the Officer’s body. After being struck, the Police Officer deployed a taser in order to subdue Walker, who was quickly handcuffed and taken into custody.
U.S. Attorney Thompson commended the investigative work of the U.S. National Park Service and the Federal Bureau of Investigation, which led to Walker’s conviction and sentence.
