Man charged with murder after woman found fatally shot inside closet of Ray County home
A man was charged with murder after law enforcement discovered a woman who had been fatally shot inside the closet of a Ray County home.
Lawrence Patrick Neary IV was charged with first-degree murder after Missouri State Highway Patrol and Lawson police discovered the woman’s body inside a closet.
Lawson police officers requested the assistance of the Missouri State Highway Patrol around 10:30 p.m. last Tuesday after discovering a woman’s body inside the closet of a Ray County home, according to a probable cause statement.
Law enforcement found Neary at another residence, where he was taken into custody around 12:32 a.m., and taken to the Richmond Police Department.
Neary, who doesn’t have an attorney listed in online court filings, allegedly told troopers that he and the woman had an altercation that led the woman to grab his handgun from underneath a pillow on the couch.
The woman then pointed the gun, a Ruger semi-automatic .22 caliber pistol, at Neary, according to the probable cause statement. Neary allegedly told troopers that he grabbed the handgun from her and refused to leave when she told him to. When the woman tried to leave the home, he allegedly stopped her.
While in the woman’s bedroom, Neary said the pair pushed each other, leading the woman to fall backwards into a closet. Neary wanted to scare the victim, so, as she laid on the floor, he allegedly fired one round beside her head, he told troopers.
The woman continued to “verbally berate him,” Neary said, so he allegedly fired another round on the other side of her head, aiming to lightly graze her skin or hair, according to the probable cause statement.
When asked, Neary allegedly told troopers it was possible the rounds he shot had struck the victim.
After firing the shots, the woman kicked Neary and grabbed the handgun, leading to a struggle that caused more rounds to be fired, according to the probable cause statement. During that struggle, the woman may have been struck.
Neary then moved away from the woman, so she couldn’t get the gun, he allegedly told troopers. From there, he allegedly shot at the hair on top of her head.
Then, Neary said the woman “quit verbally berating him,” according to the probable cause statement.
After the shooting, he allegedly left the home through a window and later re-entered to get his phone. When he returned, Neary allegedly told troopers he heard the woman moaning and making gurgling noises, while she laid on the floor inside the closet. She hadn’t moved from the spot where she was initially shot, according to the probable cause statement.
Neary allegedly told troopers he shot once more above her head to try to wake the woman.
Investigators found no evidence that Neary had shot around the woman’s head as no bullet defects were found in the wall.
Evidence showed the woman had been shot multiple times while on her back in the closet, and investigators found five .22 caliber shell casings near her body, according to the probable cause statement.
Neary first appeared in court at 8:30 a.m. Tuesday.
