Wanda Palmer was attacked in her home two years ago with a “edged” weapon such as a hatchet or a machete.
Someone hired to mow Wanda Palmer’s lawn arrived at her Cottageville, West Virginia, mobile home in June 2020 and discovered her bloodied and unconscious, apparently the victim of an attack. Wanda has awoken after being in a coma for two years, and she has named her brother, Daniel, as the person who assaulted her.
“Thank God for her ability to wake up and give the name,” Myssi Powers, who has known the Palmer siblings for years, told WCHS. “Thank God, that’s all I have to say, because she definitely deserves justice.” Definitely.”
The Washington Post reports that police have had little information since Wanda’s attack two years ago. Wanda’s mobile home had no electricity, so police couldn’t sift through her surveillance footage or cell phone history, despite the fact that they determined she’d been assaulted with an edged weapon, possibly a hatchet or machete.
One witness stated that they saw Daniel Palmer on Wanda’s porch about 10 hours before Wanda was discovered, but this was insufficient for police to pursue him as a suspect. Furthermore, Wanda Palmer appeared to be near death, so police had little hope that she would awaken and assist them.
“I wouldn’t have bet a nickel on her life that morning, she was that bad,” Sheriff Ross Mellinger told WCHS. “She was completely unconscious, circling the drain medically.” Massive amounts of head trauma, consistent with a machete or hatchet-type injury.”
Mellinger told West Virginia Metro News, “We had a little bit of an idea what happened, but the problem was that with the nuts and bolts of the case, we had nothing to go on.” There were no eyewitnesses, no residents, no surveillance footage, and no cell phone records. There was almost nothing to move forward on.”
That is, until Wanda Palmer’s caseworker contacted the police to inform them that she had awoken from her coma in early July 2022.
“The keys to the whole thing were with the victim herself, and because she was unable to communicate, we were left with nothing,” Mellinger told West Virginia Metro News. “And now, two years later, she’s awake and able to tell us exactly what happened.”
Wanda Palmer told police that her attacker was her brother, Daniel.
Wanda Palmer was “oriented” and “coherent,” according to WCHS. When deputies asked Wanda why Daniel would have attacked her, she said “he was mean,” which Powers confirmed.
“All I can say is that he’s not a good person,” Powers told WCHS. “He was a bad person.” I know from hearing other people talk that he was mean to Wanda in the past.”
Daniel Palmer was arrested and charged with attempted murder and malicious wounding in connection with Wanda Palmer’s 2020 attack, according to the Jackson County, West Virginia Sheriff’s Department on Facebook.
Despite CNN reporting that Daniel and Wanda had a history of violence, Daniel Palmer has categorically denied any involvement in the attack on his sister. He claims he hadn’t been to Wanda’s house in days before she was assaulted, despite the fact that they lived about a half-mile apart on the same property, according to the Washington Post.
Wanda Palmer appears to have a long road to recovery for the time being. On Facebook, the Jackson County Sheriff’s Department asked for “continued prayers for the victim,” and Mellinger told the Washington Post that he doesn’t know if Wanda will fully recover.
Having said that, Mellinger described her waking up and identifying her assailant as nothing short of a miracle. “From an investigator’s standpoint, this is about as rare as it gets,” the sheriff told WCHS. “I believe it is a true testament to the victim’s perseverance and strength.”
