GRAND JURY TO GET FAMILY SLAYING CASE

                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: SATURDAY, April 10, 1993                   TAG: 9304100191
SECTION: VIRGINIA                    PAGE: C-3   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: By LAURENCE HAMMACK STAFF WRITER
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Short
GRAND JURY TO GET FAMILY SLAYING CASE
A Roanoke man accused of using two guns to shoot his brother-in-law 12 times will face a murder indictment when a grand jury meets next month.
After a preliminary hearing this week, a judge found probable cause to support murder and firearms charges against Ricky Lynn O'Neil, 40, according to Assistant Commonwealth's Attorney Wanda DeWease.
O'Neil is charged with killing his sister's husband, 47-year-old Joseph Turner Davis Jr., the night of March 2 at a home the three shared on Woodcrest Road Northwest.
Authorities have said an argument could have been caused by two things: O'Neil had attempted unsuccessfully to borrow money from Davis for a sports bet earlier in the day, then became angry a second time when he arrived home too late for dinner.
Police were called to the home about 8 p.m. and were met by a woman in the driveway. She told them Davis had been shot and that O'Neil was still in the house.
When O'Neil was arrested a few minutes later, he was armed with a .22-caliber revolver, a .380 semiautomatic handgun and 37 rounds of ammunition, DeWease said.
In a statement to police, O'Neil admitted that he shot Davis but said it was after the man pulled a steak knife on him, DeWease said.
An autopsy showed Davis had been shot in the back, shoulder and arm, and that both weapons were used in the shooting.
DeWease said the shooting happened shortly after O'Neil had arrived home after walking a mile from a bar where he had been drinking.
O'Neil is being held without bond in the Roanoke City Jail. His case will go before a grand jury that meets June 7.
Keywords:
ROMUR

by Bhavesh Jinadra by CNB