Man accused of stabbing primary school principal has extradition hearing

HUNTINGTON, W.Va. (WCHS) — Joshua Collins of Huntington is accused of violently stabbing South Point Elementary School principal Bill Christian, and Collins may soon return to Ohio to answer the charges after being arrested in Huntington.

An extradition hearing in Cabell County Magistrate Court was held Friday morning.

“To be satisfied, I will sign the paperwork to return to Lawrence County,” Collins told the judge during the hearing.

The stabbing Thursday afternoon sent shockwaves through the South Point community.

“My first reaction was to pray,” said Allen Wagner of South Point.

Wagner lives a few blocks from South Point Elementary School, where her daughter is a teacher and her grandson is a student.

“Knowing that the police were on the scene within minutes, I felt safe knowing that my daughter had texted her mother and told her about this incident. They didn’t sense any danger at that point, but it was still traumatic.” said Wagner.

The incident caused the children to be evacuated from the school pending an investigation, and later Thursday evening, Lawrence County Schools announced they would also be closed on Friday.

South Point Police Chief Chris Majher said the community did what was expected, but this was a painful tragedy people will always remember, and a cleaning company is expected to come to the school this weekend, but it’s unclear when students will return.

“It’s still an emotional rollercoaster,” Majher said.

In the meantime, Collins will be scheduled for a hearing before a district judge in Cabell County so he can begin paperwork to return to Lawrence County.