Morrisey stresses WV National Guard members in D.C. on voluntary basis, no end date to mission

by Amelia Ferrell Knisely, West Virginia Watch
December 1, 2025

Around 170 West Virginia National Guard members remain in the nation’s capital following the targeted shooting of Sarah Beckstrom and Andrew Wolfe blocks from the White House.

Gov. Patrick Morrisey stressed that the Guard have been there on a voluntary basis assisting with President Donald Trump’s proposed crime crackdown.

“There was never any pressure … if people wanted to stay and fulfill the mission they could,” Morrisey said Monday at the state Capitol. 

One of the shooting victims, Army Spc. Sarah Beckstrom, 20, died Thanksgiving Day, while the other, Air Force Staff Sgt. Andrew Wolfe, 24, was critically injured and remains hospitalized. Morrisey said Wolfe was able to hear and respond to a nurse, and was also able to wiggle his toes.

The governor said his administration was focused on supporting the Guard members who remain in D.C., and counseling services have been made available.

There is no known end date to the Guard members’ time in D.C., and Morrisey said there would be a periodic review of the situation to assess if people could come home for the Christmas holiday.

“I don’t think we have a specific date in mind yet,” Morrisey said. 

In August, Morrisey sent about 300 members of the state’s National Guard to D.C. at the request of the Trump administration. The remaining Guard members volunteered to remain for  the Trump administration for “Operation D.C. Safe and Beautiful.” 

Beckstrom had volunteered to work during the Thanksgiving holiday, Morrisey said.

“I emphasize that these are people that knew the mission … I think the mission has been largely successful,” he said. “I wanted to make this voluntary, because anytime someone is doing that, there’s a lot of sacrifice that’s involved.”

In a news release Monday, the West Virginia Democratic Party called on Morrisey to clarify the scope and purpose of the ongoing deployment of Guard personnel to D.C., “particularly in light of multiple public reports documenting that Guard units — including those from West Virginia — have been assigned to landscaping, beautification, and trash-removal duties in the nation’s capital.”

“Respectfully, West Virginians deserve to know whether this deployment was designed primarily for public safety or whether our Guard was assigned work far outside its traditional responsibilities while putting themselves in harm’s way,” said Mike Pushkin, chair of the state Democratic Party. “The party expresses its deepest condolences to their families, friends, and fellow service members and asks all West Virginians to keep them in their prayers.”

Days before the shooting, a federal judge ordered an end to the monthslong National Guard deployment in  D.C., declaring that the use of troops was “unlawful.”

West Virginia Adjutant General Maj. Gen. Jim Seward said that after the Secretary of the Army extended Trump’s mission in D.C., the West Virginia National Guard was asked how many members they might be able to provide.

“We had our commander in D.C. survey the troops,” Seward said. 

Morrisey said that Guard members had the “background and training” to go to D.C. A spokesperson for the governor said Guard members time in D.C. has included “static and roving presence patrols,” and members were “not conducting beautification projects.”

Following the shooting, President Donald Trump requested 500 more National Guard members be sent to the city. West Virginia has not been asked to send additional guard members.

Morrisey also responded to reporters’ questions about why had to walk back a false social media post Wednesday afternoon that both Guard members had died in the shooting. He reversed course later that day, explaining that he’d received conflicting information. 

“When there’s a change, then you alert the public if there’s an error, you correct the error. That’s what happened, and that’s what we did. So, I won’t go into additional details at this time,” he said.

The suspected gunman in the incident, 29-year-old Afghan refugee Rahmanullah Lakanwal, will face a first-degree murder charge along with other charges.

Funeral details for Beckstrom haven’t been released. The governor ordered flags to be flown at half-staff in recognition of her death.

Trump said on Sunday that he invited Beckstrom’s family to the White House, adding that he spoke to her parents and they were “devastated.”

Morrisey asked for continued prayers for Wolfe as he remains in the hospital. 

“The family is going through a very difficult situation right now as Andrew fights to survive,” he said. 

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