Lincoln County Man Charged in Father’s Murder
Joshua Sauls was arrested in Los Angeles a month after the shooting and is charged with one felony count of deliberate homicide after law enforcement discovered his father’s body south of Eureka
By Maggie Dresser
A 23-year-old Lincoln County man suspected of fatally shooting his father in the Eureka area on May 31 was arrested June 28 in Los Angeles County, Calif., on unrelated charges almost a month after the shooting incident, according to the Lincoln County Sheriff’s Office.
Joshua Sauls is charged with one felony count of deliberate homicide in Lincoln County Justice Court and was issued an arrest warrant with no bond on June 29. He is currently booked in the Twin Towers Correctional Facility in Los Angeles.
According to charging documents, Lincoln County Sheriff’s Office deputies on May 31 at 6:24 p.m. responded to a report of a deceased man on Thirsty Lake Road near Eureka, where they found the body of John Lewis Sauls. The victim had multiple gunshot wounds to his head, charging documents state, and investigators recovered three spent shell casings and some cigarette butts from the scene.
During the investigation, detectives learned that Joshua Sauls lived with his parents and was angry at his father because of a “family crisis” that had been escalating, records state.
Based on interviews with family members, detectives learned that on May 30 Joshua and John Sauls were riding together in a black Chevrolet Monte Carlo when the elder Sauls grabbed the steering wheel, causing Joshua to kick his father out of the vehicle and abandon him in the Dog Creek area south of U.S. Highway 93. The next day, Joshua reportedly returned to the area in a Toyota Land Cruiser to look for his father, records state.
Joshua’s mother told investigators she had not seen her husband since May 30.
On May 31, a witness said he saw a black Monte Carlo drive up Meadow Creek Road, which is approximately seven miles down Thirsty Lake Road, at about noon.
Law enforcement could not locate the suspect for nearly a month following the incident and family members said he could have been hiding with friends in a neighboring county before Los Angeles County Sheriff’s deputies arrested him on June 28.
Sauls’ next court appearance is scheduled for July 13 in Los Angeles. If convicted, Sauls faces a maximum sentence of life in the Montana State Prison.