By BOB GIBBINS
Staff Writer
TAHLEQUAH —
Two men were jailed early Tuesday as an argument between friends turned deadly north of Tahlequah.
Kent Allen Johnson and Randelle Jay Sanders, both 30, were booked into the Cherokee County Detention Center in connection with the shooting death of Johnathan Hall. Johnson was booked on a first-degree manslaughter charge, and Sanders was booked for obstructing an officer.
Sheriff’s Capt. Bob Sanders said the men were at Johnson’s home on Jones Road north of Tahlequah when an argument started. Witnesses told investigators Johnson and Hall were arguing about narcotics. Johnson has told law enforcement he accidentally shot Hall.
Hall was shot once in the chest with a .22-caliber revolver. The firearm was recovered Tuesday afternoon when law enforcement officers served a search warrant on the residence.
Investigators said Johnson drove Hall to the Tahlequah City Hospital emergency room, where he died, according to reports.
Sheriff’s Sgt. Tom Moore was assigned to take the report, and he notified Sanders. The Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation was later called to assist at the scene.
Johnson and Sanders are expected to appear before a judge today for an arraignment on their charges.
Randelle Sanders has a Cherokee County conviction for accessory to murder in the second degree for the December 2001 shooting death of Jackie Balthrop. He is on probation on that conviction until March 2019, Department of Corrections records show.
Johnson has previous drug convictions in Muskogee County and was also charged in Cherokee County in 2004 with possession of a firearm while on probation.
