Victim and Suspect Identified in Lake County Homicide
Lake County Sheriff Don Bell released details on Thursday afternoon of a suspected homicide that occurred near Ronan on October 8.
‘The Lake County Sheriff’s Office responded to the report of an accidental shooting on Parizeau Lane in Ronan,” said Sheriff Bell. “Upon arrival it was determined that 65 year-old Jim Lewis of Ronan had been shot and killed by 78 year-old James S. Deaton who was also from Ronan.”
Bell said an arrest has been made in the investigation.
“Deaton has been arrested on suspicion of deliberate homicide and is currently in the Lake County Jail,” he said. “The shooting took place indoors in the residence where both men lived.”
The victim’s body has been taken to the Montana State Crime Lab in Missoula to determine the exact cause and manner of death.
An investigation by detectives and deputies of the Lake County Sheriff’s Office is underway.