KJZZ is a service of Rio Salado College,
and Maricopa Community Colleges

Copyright © 2024 KJZZ/Rio Salado College/MCCCD
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

Former Guns & Ammo Editor Shoots, Kills Friend

Audio Clip

Former Guns & Ammo Editor Shoots, Kills Friend

Former Guns & Ammo Editor Shoots, Kills Friend

A former editor of Guns & Ammo magazine has been arrested for shooting and killing a friend Wednesday in Mohave County.

The county sheriff’s office said 53-year-old Richard Venola of Golden Valley was arrested on a second-degree murder charge. Police found 39-year-old James Patrick O’Neill dead of a rifle shot to the chest. Police say the men had been drinking, but detectives don’t know what led to the shooting.

Guns & Ammo magazine said Venola served in the military for almost 20 years before writing for and then serving as the publication’s 12th editor. In a profile of Venola he’s described as “one of the more colorful editors” and that he possesses an encyclopedic knowledge of all things related to firearms.

Laurel Morales was a Fronteras Desk senior field correspondent in Flagstaff from 2011 to 2020.