On October 1, 2022, Rory Mehen, a 47-year-old White/Caucasian male, was shot and killed in New Meadows, Idaho. The incident that led to his death began when Mehen and his wife, Sara, who owned the Hartland Inn, called the Adams County Sheriff's Office to report the suspicious behavior of a guest, John Cody Hart. A deputy responded and spoke with Hart, instructing him to stop entering other guests' rooms.
The situation appeared resolved, and the deputy left for another call.
However, the interaction had angered Hart. He later told detectives that he had been looking for socks he believed belonged to his children and that the Mehens had made him feel like a thief when they confronted him. Shortly after the deputy's departure, at approximately 12:45 p.m., a 911 call reported shots fired at the inn. When law enforcement arrived, they found Rory and Sara Mehen deceased in the main office.
The suspect, John Cody Hart, fled the scene in his vehicle but was later apprehended by authorities. Hart, who has a history of mental illness including a diagnosis of schizophrenia, was a guest at the hotel at the time of the shooting. He had a prior criminal record in Washington for assault and had been deemed incompetent to stand trial in that case. He was released from jail in Washington while awaiting a bed at a state psychiatric hospital, a placement that never occurred due to backlogs.
Hart was charged with two counts of first-degree murder for the deaths of Rory and Sara Mehen. Prosecutors initially sought the death penalty, citing the heinous nature of the crime. In July 2023, Hart entered into a plea agreement, pleading guilty to the murder charges in exchange for the death penalty being taken off the table. He was subsequently sentenced to 30 years to life in prison.
