Montrose County Sheriff Rick Dunlap said his agency arrested Whitmarsh Bailey, 55, June 21, after securing a search warrant triggered by his grandson. The boy, 15, alleged Bailey punched him, threw him to the ground, and hit and kicked him repeatedly. He fled to the home of a neighbor, who took him to the sheriff's office.
Deputies reported finding around 19 firearms and other weapons on the Bailey property, despite his prior felony convictions.
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Dunlap said the teen argued with his grandfather June 20 over doing chores, but complied when Bailey began yelling at him. The boy said Bailey criticized how he was using a Weed Eater and then smacked him in the back of the head when the machine threw up a rock and hurt him.
The boy reportedly fled into a wooded area near the family's Dave Wood Road residence. Dunlap said the youth reported being afraid and told his grandfather he didn't want to live with him anymore.
Bailey reportedly told the boy to start packing, but when he returned to the house, Bailey allegedly grabbed him by the shoulder and punched him in the eye.
"The kid swung back to defend himself, and Mr. Bailey threw him to the ground and punched him all over the body several times," Dunlap alleged.
The youth also complained he was kicked twice in the body and once in the head as his grandmother tried to intervene.
Her actions allowed the youth to escape, Dunlap said, but the boy eventually returned to yard work, sore and crying.
According to Dunlap's reports, Bailey ran toward the boy, looking visibly angry, which caused the teen to flee again. This time, Bailey allegedly chased him on a 4-wheeler, but the boy was able to reach a neighbor.
"He stated he was afraid for sheriff's officers to go to his house, because Bailey had multiple weapons on the premises," Dunlap said.
The MCSO checked his criminal history and found a felony conviction for first-degree assault and a 1977 conviction for manufacturing marijuana. Dunlap said there were also convictions for disorderly conduct and an active protection order that prohibited Bailey from using, possessing, carrying or acquiring firearms and other weapons.
Dunlap said that because of Bailey's past, all available deputies were assigned to serving the search warrant, which was executed in tactical mode.
"We found several weapons, ammunition and weapons of all different calibers," he said. "They knew we were coming. Most of the weapons were in the pickup truck."
Dunlap said Bailey's wife later claimed ownership of the weapons. "That's not for us to decide. According to the restraining order, he's not to be anywhere around them."
Bailey and his wife weren't home when deputies arrived, but Dunlap obtained a vehicle description and spotted it on Dave Wood Road.
The tactical team stopped the vehicle as it pulled into Bailey's driveway and he surrendered peacefully.
"This guy had been convicted of a prior felony, first-degree assault. Our deputies had dealt with this guy in the past. It's an issue of child abuse, which led to something more."
The sheriff said when formal charges are filed, they could include assault in addition to child abuse, pending review by the district attorney's office.
The boy was removed from the home by Montrose County Health and Human Services, Dunlap said.
A court date for Bailey was not immediately available.
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