On the morning of February 6, 2023, deputies in Phelps County, Missouri, responded to a 911 report of a shooting near St. James and found 64-year-old Ralph Leon Karlinski Jr. dead of apparent gunshot wounds. The caller was his 19-year-old son, Samuel Ralph James Karlinski, who initially told detectives he had shot his father three times with a .22-caliber pistol in self-defense.

Forensic findings and the probable cause statement contradict that account. Investigators say Ralph was shot in the left side of his face and the back of the head, with no chest entry wounds; spent casings and a semi-automatic handgun were recovered, and multiple rounds struck bedroom walls and a door. Samuel reportedly showed no visible injuries consistent with a struggle.

Samuel was taken into custody and charged with second-degree murder and armed criminal action; charges were briefly dropped for procedural reasons and then refiled, with bond set at $500,000. Ralph, known as Skeeter, was described by family as an outdoorsman who hunted and fished and had worked as a glass specialist and union laborer.

Did anyone in the area know the Karlinski family or see activity near that residence on February 6?