On April 20, 2024, at approximately 10:30 p.m., the Butte County Sheriff's Office received a 911 call reporting a shooting in the 500 block of Lodgeview Drive in the Kelly Ridge area of Oroville, California. Upon arrival, deputies found 61-year-old Richard Alan Kelly of Chico lying deceased in the street next to his vehicle, having suffered a fatal gunshot wound to the face.
The 911 caller, a female resident of the home, identified the shooter as her boyfriend, 54-year-old Joseph Andrew Perkins of Oroville. She recounted that earlier in the day, Kelly, a longtime friend, had taken her car shopping. Upon their return to her residence that evening, they were confronted by an angry Perkins, who brandished a firearm. Perkins allegedly pulled Kelly from his car, assaulted him with the gun, and, despite attempts by both the woman and Kelly to de-escalate the situation, shot Kelly in the head.
After the shooting, Perkins fled the scene in the homeowner's vehicle, which was later found abandoned less than half a mile away. An arrest warrant was issued that night, and on April 26, 2024, Perkins was located at a residence in Stockton. He was arrested at a nearby gas station with assistance from the Stockton Police Department. A search of the Stockton residence revealed several firearms, including a loaded pistol under the pillow on the bed Perkins had been using.
Perkins, a convicted felon with two prior "strike" convictions and eight total felony convictions, was charged with murder, with an additional allegation of firearm use during the commission of the crime, and being a felon in possession of a firearm. He was arraigned in Butte County Superior Court on April 30, 2024, where the judge ordered him held without bail. A preliminary hearing on July 25, 2024, resulted in Perkins being held to answer on the charges, with a trial date to be set. If convicted, he faces life imprisonment.
