In the early summer of 2014, tensions were escalating in a Fargo, North Dakota, home shared by two cousins. The residence, which should have been a place of familial comfort, was instead becoming a source of growing discord between 28-year-old White / Caucasian male Randall Doehner and his 25-year-old cousin, Christopher Hampton. The conflict reportedly stemmed from Hampton's request for Doehner to move out, citing what he described as poor behavior and a failure to contribute to the household bills. This disagreement, however, was colored by a deeper and more sinister suspicion in Hampton's mind: he had come to believe that his cousin was trying to poison him. Though medical tests would later find no evidence of poison in Hampton's system, they did detect the presence of drugs.
The troubled living situation reached its tragic and violent conclusion on June 26, 2014. On that day, Randall Doehner was shot and killed. A subsequent pathological examination would reveal that he had been shot in both the back and the head. The evidence suggested that the shots were not fired at close range but from a distance of more than two feet, a detail that would become significant in the legal proceedings that followed. The life of the young man was abruptly ended in the place he called home, at the hands of his own relative.
Christopher Hampton was arrested and charged with the murder of his cousin. As his case proceeded to trial, he did not deny pulling the trigger. Instead, his defense was built on a claim of self-preservation. Hampton testified that on the day of the shooting, he was in fear for his life, a culmination of the paranoia he felt about being poisoned by Doehner. He faced the possibility of life in prison if convicted of the murder charge to which he pleaded not guilty.
The initial trial took a dramatic turn when the jury, after hearing all the evidence and testimony, found themselves unable to reach a unanimous decision. This deadlock resulted in the judge declaring a mistrial in late July 2015. The lack of a conclusive verdict meant that the legal battle was far from over. Christopher Hampton remained in custody at the Cass County Jail, and a new trial was promptly scheduled to begin just a few months later, ensuring that the quest for justice in the death of Randall Doehner would continue.
