Bellview – The 911 call from a Moccasin Creek Road home just after midnight June 10 started off chaotically and only grew worse as it recorded the last moments of a teenager’s life.
Willy Rush McWhirter, 19, of Blairsville, Ga., was visiting friends when a blast from a 16-gauge shotgun left him mortally wounded. The Cherokee County Sheriff’s Office characterized the incident as an “accidental shooting due to negligence.” It referred the case to the district attorney’s office for review. The suspect in the shooting, who was not identified by law enforcement, was reportedly so distraught that he himself required medical attention.
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The original call went into the 911 center in Union County, Ga., said Theresa Creasman, Cherokee County e-911 communica-tions director. The location of the incident, 2535 Moccasin Creek Road, is a Blairsville address although it is actually in Cherokee County just north of the Georgia border.
Union County relayed the dispatch to Cherokee County’s 911 center at 12:15 a.m. June 10, according to records provided by the two agencies. Some details in 911 records from both Cherokee and Union counties were redacted.
Aside from the mix-up over jurisdiction, there was confusion about who was injured, how he was injured, where he was injured and how badly he was injured.
There were six people in the house at the time, some of whom were asleep when the shooting took place. Information was provided by the callers under extreme duress as they watched the tragedy unfold before them.
Cherokee County dispatched deputies, Emergency Medical Services and put a medical evacuation helicopter on standby. Units were dispatched about two minutes after the call was relayed to Cherokee County, with the first medics arriving and staging at 12:27 a.m., and the first sheriff’s deputies on the scene at 12:31 a.m.
The injury was determined to be from an accidental discharge of a 16-gauge shotgun to his head, resulting in a severe head injury. Callers reported that he was still breathing and were given instructions to provide first aid while being admonished to not touch the weapon.
Once Cherokee County sheriff’s deputies arrived, medics left the staging area and attempted life-saving treatment but were unsuccessful. McWhirter was pronounced dead at the scene.
McWhirter was the son of Cecilia Ungab McWhirter and Hillary McWhirter. He was a native and lifelong resident of Union County. He enjoyed hunting, riding his bicycle, animals, singing and playing the guitar. He attended Union Baptist Church.
A funeral was held June 15 with interment in the Union Baptist Church Cemetery.