In the summer of 2013, the life of 51-year-old Gary Bell Edens, a White male, was tragically cut short in a violent encounter at his home in Lawrence, Kansas. On the evening of July 17th, what began as a search for a missing car escalated into a fatal shooting that would be the city's first homicide in five years. Two individuals, 19-year-old Brittny M. Adams of Topeka and 28-year-old Jonathan R. Rush of Wichita, arrived at Edens' residence on Michigan Street.
Adams was reportedly looking for two women who she believed had stolen her car, and their search had led them to Edens' home, where his adult son was staying.
An altercation erupted at the front door between the residents and the two visitors. In the ensuing struggle, a gunshot rang out, and Gary Edens was struck in the head. A neighbor rushed to perform CPR, but the wound was too severe. Edens was transported to Lawrence Memorial Hospital, where he was pronounced dead. The incident was particularly harrowing as Edens' two sons, one an adult and the other a young child, were present in the home at the time of the shooting.
Less than an hour after the fatal shooting, authorities in Topeka located and arrested Adams and Rush. Adams was subsequently charged with second-degree murder, while Rush faced lesser charges, including aggravated assault and criminal possession of a firearm. The investigation revealed that Adams was the one who pulled the trigger. During the legal proceedings, a former cellmate of Adams testified that Adams had boasted about the killing.
Ultimately, Brittny Marie Adams pleaded guilty to second-degree murder. In February 2014, a judge sentenced her to nearly 13 years in prison. She also received additional time for threatening a corrections officer while in jail. During the sentencing, Edens' adult son, Jeremy, confronted Adams in court, speaking of the good man she had taken and the grandchildren who would now grow up without their grandfather. Jonathan Rush's charges in Douglas County were later dropped as federal charges for firearm possession were pursued. He pleaded guilty to the federal charges and awaited his own sentencing.
