On November 10, 2018, deputies from the Lewis County Sheriff's Office responded to a distress call at a hunting cabin located in rural Lewistown, Missouri. The incident occurred during the opening weekend of the firearms deer hunting season, a time when many hunters from across the state had traveled to the area. Inside a cabin on State Highway Y, authorities discovered the body of 52-year-old Randell J. Reising, a male resident of Arnold, Missouri. He had suffered a single, fatal gunshot wound to the chest and was pronounced deceased at the scene by the county coroner at 5:22 a.m.
The investigation revealed that Reising and his companions had woken up around 4:00 a.m. to prepare for the morning hunt. While the group was getting ready inside the cabin, a firearm was discharged, striking Reising. Investigators determined that the shot was fired by Steven A. Lewis, a 50-year-old friend of the victim who had also traveled from Arnold for the hunting trip. Law enforcement officials described the event as a tragic accident that occurred while the men were handling their equipment in the early morning hours.
Following the shooting, the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office, assisted by the Missouri State Highway Patrol, conducted a preliminary inquiry which supported the account that the discharge was unintentional. The findings indicated that there was no malicious intent behind the action, and the death was classified as an accidental hunting fatality. Consequently, no information regarding arrests, criminal charges, or a trial for Lewis was released in connection with the case, as authorities treated the matter as a non-criminal accident pending the final results of an autopsy.
