In the late afternoon of Wednesday, September 3, 2025, emergency services in O'Brien County, Iowa, received a distressing 911 call. The report detailed a shooting at a residence on Yew Avenue, located just east of the small town of Hartley. First responders were dispatched to the scene with urgency, prepared for a critical situation.
Upon their arrival shortly after 3:30 p.m., they discovered a male victim inside the home.
He was identified as Robert Leroy Peters Jr., a 51-year-old resident of Hartley. Peters had sustained a gunshot wound to the head. Medical personnel immediately transported him by ambulance to Spencer Hospital. Despite their efforts, Robert Leroy Peters Jr. was pronounced dead at the hospital.
In the days that followed, an investigation into the circumstances of the shooting was launched by the O'Brien County Sheriff's Office. To determine the exact cause and manner of death, his body was sent to the Iowa State Medical Examiner's Office in Ankeny for an autopsy. The community was assured that there was no ongoing threat to the public. The results of the autopsy later concluded that the gunshot wound was self-inflicted. Following the investigation, authorities confirmed that no other individuals were involved in the incident.
