WV Woman Wakes From 2-Year Coma, IDs Brother As Attacker: Police

JACKSON COUNTY, WV — After spending nearly two years in a coma following a brutal assault, a West Virginia woman woke up and identified her brother as her attacker.

Wanda Palmer, 51, was "attacked, hacked and left for dead," according to a statement posted on the Jackson County Sheriff's Department Facebook page. In June 2020, authorities found her in her Cottageville home in an "upright position" on her couch, CNN reported. Her body had sustained severe injuries consistent with a hatchet or an ax.

"I wouldn't have wagered a nickel for her life that morning, she was in that bad of shape. Quite honestly, she was unconscious, circling the drain medically. Massive, massive amounts of head trauma," Jackson County Sheriff Ross Mellinger told WCHS.

Jackson County sheriff's deputies arrested Daniel Palmer on Friday. He was charged with attempted murder and malicious wounding, according to police.

Wanda and Daniel had a "violent history," WCHS reported. Daniel Palmer was identified early as a suspect but investigators said they did not have enough evidence to file charges.

A witness told police they saw Daniel on Wanda's porch around midnight the day before she was found, CNN reported.

Daniel Palmer's arrest closes a two-year-long investigation where police investigated several people but never filed charges, according to CNN.