In the early morning hours of March 16, 2018, the quiet of a northwest Oklahoma City neighborhood was broken by the sound of a car crash. A vehicle had struck a mailbox near Memorial and County Line Road. Inside the crashed SUV, a grim discovery was made by responding officers: the bodies of two men. One of the victims was 39-year-old Shaun Dejon Ruddle, a white male. The other was 23-year-old Cody Dwayne Early, Jr.
It was quickly apparent that their deaths were not the result of the crash; both men had sustained injuries indicative of a homicide.
The investigation into the double homicide revealed a sinister plot. Authorities alleged that Ronnie Lewis Miller III had planned to rob one of the victims of drugs and money. According to court documents, Miller shot both Ruddle and Early in the head after one of them made fun of him. The bodies of the two men were found inside the stolen vehicle after the crash. Investigators learned that Miller had allegedly intended to return to the scene to destroy the evidence by blowing up the vehicle.
In July 2018, Ronnie Lewis Miller III was charged with two counts of first-degree murder. The case, however, took a different turn due to Miller's mental state. After a preliminary hearing in May 2021 where probable cause was established, Miller was committed to the Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services. In January 2022, a judge found Miller incompetent to stand trial, leading to the suspension of the criminal proceedings against him. The court ordered that Miller receive treatment with the goal of him eventually achieving competency to face the charges.
