Investigators say John E. Rich III killed his stepson, Richard Lease, after a dispute inside their shared residence.
BOONEVILLE, Ark. — The case against a Logan County man accused of killing his stepson is unfolding across two very different public records: a murder file that describes a bedroom shooting and an obituary that describes the life left behind.
Authorities say John E. Rich III, 68, shot Richard Lease, 38, on Jan. 7 at the home they shared south of Booneville. Rich has been charged with first-degree murder, and investigators say the shooting came after a dispute involving claims that Lease had taken tools and money. The case matters now because it has moved from an initial arrest to a formal homicide prosecution, while Lease’s family and community have already marked his death through funeral services and memorial tributes.
The law enforcement account is concise and severe. The Logan County Sheriff’s Office said it received a 911 call from a residence on State Highway 23 reporting that a person there had been shot. Deputies called for help from Booneville and Magazine police, then found Lease dead in a bedroom with several gunshot wounds. Rich, who also lived at the home, was arrested without incident. Officers recovered a rifle at the scene. Court reporting later added the motive allegation and a more detailed timeline, saying Rich and Lease had a verbal altercation before Lease went to his bedroom. Rich then allegedly armed himself with an AK-style rifle, went to the room and fired several shots. The sheriff’s office said the Arkansas State Police assisted in working the case, and the Logan County coroner took custody of Lease’s body after investigators processed the scene.
The court account cited by Law&Crime also describes what investigators say Rich told them after the shooting. According to that report, Rich said he was tired of Lease stealing tools and money and was just wanting him out. Police said Rich admitted he entered the bedroom with a loaded rifle and shot Lease multiple times. Those details give the prosecution an early motive theory tied directly to the defendant’s alleged statements. At the same time, parts of the story remain outside public view. Authorities have not publicly said whether anyone else in the home heard the argument, whether the theft allegations had previously been reported to police, or whether investigators recovered additional evidence such as shell casings, phone records or surveillance footage. They also have not publicly described the exact layout of the room or whether Lease had any chance to leave before he was shot.
The obituary for Lease fills in the human details that do not appear in the charging reports. It says he was born in Glendale, California, on April 18, 1987, and died Jan. 7, 2026. It describes him as a skilled and hardworking contractor who loved hunting, fishing and time outdoors. It also says he was a devoted father to four children and had deep ties to relatives, friends and church communities in Booneville and Vian, Oklahoma. Funeral services were held Jan. 17 at Blackgum Harvestime Church in Vian, with burial afterward at Box Cemetery. Those details do not answer the legal questions in the homicide case, but they show the shape of the loss. They also explain why the story has resonance beyond a police blotter item. In a region where family, church and work life often overlap, the death of one man can ripple across multiple towns and generations at once.
The criminal case has advanced in measured procedural steps. Rich was booked into the Logan County Detention Center on Jan. 8 on an anticipated first-degree murder charge, according to the sheriff’s office, and officials said he was held on a $1 million bond. Jail records reflected the same bond figure. Law&Crime later reported that Rich had been formally charged and was scheduled for arraignment March 6. What follows in a case like this is usually less dramatic than the initial reports but just as important: plea proceedings, appointment or appearance of counsel, exchange of evidence, review of forensic reports and arguments over what a jury may eventually hear. Because this case appears to involve statements to police, a recovered firearm and a contained scene inside a residence, those pieces are likely to become the backbone of future hearings. Whether the defense contests intent, identification or admissibility, the record created in those early hours will shape the rest of the prosecution.
For now, the public knows the case through a few stark images and a few warm memories. The stark images come from the sheriff’s office and charging account: a home south of Booneville, a bedroom, several gunshot wounds and a rifle recovered by officers. The warm memories come from the obituary: a contractor, outdoorsman, father and man of faith whose funeral drew family to Oklahoma just days after the shooting. AP style often asks reporters to move quickly from event to consequence, but in a case like this the consequence is not only the filing of a murder charge. It is also the collision between the legal record of a violent death and the family record of a life.
That collision remains unresolved as the court case continues. Rich was publicly reported as jailed on a $1 million bond, and the next known court milestone was the March 6 arraignment setting. Lease’s burial has already taken place, but the criminal questions raised by his death are only beginning to move through the Arkansas court system.
Author note: Last updated March 30, 2026.