Ex-sheriff’s deputy charged in wife’s fatal shooting

By The Associated Press
May 23, 2020 | 10:59 AM

MARTINSVILLE, Va. — A former sheriff’s deputy in Virginia has been charged with three other suspects in the shooting death of his wife.

Martinsville Sheriff Steve Draper said 66-year-old David Lee Morse, a former Henry County sheriff’s deputy, was arrested Wednesday on charges of first-degree murder and conspiracy to commit murder.

The Martinsville Bulletin reports that Morse was being held without bond.

The Virginia State Police said Morse called 911 on May 13 and reported that he had just arrived home from work and found the body of his wife, 63-year-old Pamela Morse.

The Medical Examiner’s Office in Roanoke confirmed that Pamela Morse had died of a gunshot wound.

Va. health dept. improves nursing home inspection backlog, reforms sanction criteria for facilities

By Virginia Mercury
August 22, 2026 | 8:37 PM

Stories of neglect in care or unsanitary living situations have plagued several of Virginia’s nursing home facilities in recent years and data backs up a lapse in oversight by state agencies. With reform efforts underway, the Virginia Department of Health officials said they aim to adopt sanction criteria by the end of the year to rein in bad actors and get troubled facilities back on track. As of July, 58% of Virginia’s nursing homes were overdue for inspections and 68 of Virginia’s 289 nursing homes were found to have serious deficiencies, according to ProPublica. Several of the state’s flagged facilities with numerous deficiencies also had high staffing turnover rates. The issue has been salient among various healthcare spaces, including VDH.

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