Alabama Man Goes to Casino After Murdering His Father

An Alabama man allegedly shot and killed his 81-year-old father, then went to a nearby casino hours later and then killed himself the next morning. Alabama Father and Son Found Dead in Apparent Murder-Suicide Authorities are investigating the deaths of Bill Shaner and his 27-year-old son, Lance Shaner, in Elmore County as an apparent murder-suicide. Deputies with the Elmore County Sheriff’s Office were on a property on Tower Hill Road in the Seman community around 6:30 a.m. Friday, November 6. The emergency response was sparked by a 911 call from Lance Shaner, who told dispatchers he had killed his father and was thinking of killing himself, reported Hoodline. Deputies arrived at the home, but the caller hung up before they got there, investigators say. Both men were later found dead on the property by officers. Bill Shaner was found in a laundry and storage area in the back of the house. At least two gunshot wounds, one of them to his torso, were determined by investigators. The sheriff’s office said it believes he lived for a time after the shooting and died of blood loss. Lance Shaner was found in another part of the residence suffering from an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound. He had a gun in his right hand, reports said. Authorities believe the same gun was used in both deaths. Son Goes to Wind Creek Casino After Killing Father Investigators said the fatal shooting happened between 9 p.m. and 10 p.m. Thursday, November 5. However, Lance Shaner did not immediately call emergency services after the incident. Instead, he allegedly drove roughly 20 minutes to Wind Creek Wetumpka, a tribal casino owned by the Poarch Band of Creek Indians. It was not immediately clear what the visit was about. Finally, Shaner returned to the family house. In his 911 call, he took responsibility for his father’s death and appeared upset about what had happened. Sheriff Bill Franklin said dispatchers did a good job in keeping the caller on the line. Authorities, however, think Shaner shot himself just after the phone conversation ended. The sheriff’s office said the two men had multiple disputes in the days leading up to the incident. Sources said their arguments were about things Lance wanted and where he wanted to go. Authorities have not released more information about the disputes or established a clear motive in the killing. Franklin also noted that Bill Shaner was a fixture in the local community. The 81-year-old was well-known among residents of the Seman area, where he had lived all his life. The sheriff used the investigation to point out the scale of domestic violence cases in the county. He said local authorities had made between 300 and 500 related arrests annually.