Ryan Craig Boomer, 26, was killed in a late-night confrontation at the Lower Mount Bethel Township home where he lived with his mother and stepfather. The death occurred on October 21, 2017, after an argument about Boomer’s unemployment escalated into a physical struggle and a single gunshot that proved fatal. Neighbors described him as facing personal challenges but generally well regarded.

Law enforcement quickly focused on stepfather Dennis Long, then 53, as the primary suspect. On the day his homicide trial was scheduled to begin in Northampton County Court, Long pleaded no contest to voluntary manslaughter. Prosecutors said the two men struggled and the shot was fired during that struggle; Long’s attorney maintained the firearm discharged accidentally and that Long immediately regretted the outcome. Long was sentenced to four to eight years in state prison.

Anyone who knew Ryan or was in Lower Mount Bethel Township on October 21, 2017, with information is asked to come forward.