Logan Willis received consecutive sentences totaling eight to 36 years after pleading guilty to four charges.
RIPLEY, W.Va. — A West Virginia man was sentenced Tuesday to eight to 36 years in prison after admitting he severely beat his pregnant estranged girlfriend during what she believed would be a custody exchange and shopping trip for their child.
Logan Willis, 22, of Oak Hill pleaded guilty to attempted murder, two counts of malicious assault and one count of domestic battery. A Jackson County judge ordered the sentences to run consecutively during the July 28 hearing, giving Willis the maximum combined prison term available under the sentences imposed.
The charges arose from a June 6, 2025, attack near Kenna in rural Jackson County. Investigators said Willis and the woman had arranged to exchange custody of a young child they shared. The woman entered Willis’ vehicle believing they would travel to Walmart to purchase supplies the child would need for the weekend, according to Sheriff Ross Mellinger.
Mellinger said investigators concluded that Willis did not intend to complete the custody exchange or shopping trip. Authorities said he instead drove the woman to an isolated area, repeatedly assaulted her inside the vehicle and pulled her into nearby woods. She was in the late stages of pregnancy at the time.
Willis left the wooded area and drove to a rural gas station with the couple’s child in the vehicle, authorities said. He then called Jackson County 911 and reported that he believed he had killed his girlfriend. Mellinger said Willis told investigators that he had beaten the woman until she stopped breathing.
Deputies searched the area near Kenna and followed a blood trail into the woods, where they found the woman alive but critically injured. A criminal complaint said she had numerous serious injuries consistent with a life-altering assault. Investigators also reported signs that she had been strangled.
The woman was taken to CAMC General Hospital for treatment. Authorities did not release her name, and current reports have not publicly detailed the full extent of her recovery. Officials also have not released updated information about the outcome of her pregnancy.
Willis was arrested shortly after the attack and initially charged with attempted murder, malicious assault and strangulation. He was held on a $500,000 bond while the case proceeded through Jackson County courts. The final case included two malicious assault counts and a domestic battery charge in addition to attempted murder.
At Tuesday’s sentencing hearing, the survivor delivered a victim-impact statement describing the consequences of the attack, according to local news reports. Authorities did not release the full statement. Willis received a prison term with a minimum of eight years and a maximum of 36 years before the sentence is completed.
The sentencing closes the trial-level criminal case following Willis’ guilty pleas. State corrections officials will determine his custody placement and eventual parole eligibility under West Virginia law and the terms of the court’s sentence.
Author note: Last updated July 30, 2026.