The Last Lap of Life: The Murder of Jogger, Chris Lane.
[Duncan, OK]
Chris Lane was the baby of his family, ultimately protected by three older sisters who adored him, but also still enjoyed having that “big sister control” over him. His older sister, Erin, explained that she precisely pushed his little body back down when he was a baby and attempting to walk. “It didn’t work did it?”, she joked. At 17 years old, Chris had been perfecting his baseball skills in Australia. He possessed a level of talent and motivation that many young men would dream of having. Due to his dedication to ball, it brought him onto the radar of American college scholarships and eventually moved to a city in Oklahoma that really embraced the sport.
At 22 years old, he was officially living in the state of Oklahoma and dating his girlfriend, Sarah Harper. Things were so serious between the two that during their visit back to Australia to meet Chris’ parents, he insisted that they pick a nice hotel for Sarah to experience. He wanted to take care of her in the most romantic ways.
On August 16th, 2013, Chris and Sarah were back in America at her parent’s place. She had a work shift at a local store, so Chris explained that he would go on a quick jog and finish packing to return to college. “He for some reason really liked running at the hottest part of the day”, his girlfriend explained. As he continuously ran through town, each foot hitting the concrete one after another, he passed a house where three teenagers were hanging out and using drugs.
Those teenagers were Michael Jones (16), James Edwards (15), and Chancey Luna (17).
Chris continued his jog past the boys simply not suspecting what was about to unfold.
5 minutes after Chris passed by the home, surveillance video captured a dark vehicle containing the three teenagers pulling out of the driveway and down the road. According to Michael Jones, he was driving while James was the passenger and Chancey was seated in the back. They were in the midst of rolling a marijuana joint when they noticed Chris jogging to the side. The boys poked fun at Chris together within the car as Michael pulled up alongside him. Suddenly, a gunshot rang out from outside the car window. Chris let out a loud scream from the pain as he was immediately struck in the back and collapsed in a nearby ditch. The bullet punctured his right lung and lodged in his chest.
“Chancey pulled the trigger. I didn’t see it, but I know he did”, explained Michael in a later interrogation. He went on to explain that Chancey was sitting in the backseat, extended his arm through the passenger window, and fired at Chris.
Two good Samaritans stopped to help him during his last moments. One woman called 911 to explain his injuries and said “if you don’t hurry, he’s gone.” Meanwhile, the three teenagers continued down the road to get rid of the gun and ammo. By the time police and paramedics arrived to help Chris, it was too late.
After shooting Chris, the boys wanted to dive even deeper into trouble. James communicated with another boy to arrange a fight in a parking lot. However, James threatened to use a gun which caused the other boy’s father to call authorities and report the teens’ specific waiting location. At this point in the investigation regarding Chris’ death, police had a vehicle description due to the good Samaritans witnessing it during the shooting. When the 911 call from the boy’s father reported the same vehicle, police knew they had to arrive there quickly.
When police transcended on the area, they arrested all three teenagers and took them in for questioning where Michael admitted to the crimesd.
As for Chris’ burial, it was important to Sarah that he was brought home to Australia. She also emphasized that she didn’t want him flying alone so she took that flight with his body as well.
The two attorneys for Michael and James argued that the shooting was pure accident. “These young fellas thought there were blanks in this 22 gun. There was a swerving. It could’ve gone off accidentally”, explained one of the lawyers to news outlets. Nonetheless, the true motive for the crime has never been uncovered. All boys have been asked multiple times why they chose Chris, but all fail to answer.
The court wasn’t buying the accident defense presented by the attorneys at all and sentenced James Edwards to 25 years. However, he was ultimately released after only serving two years.
Michael Jones was given life in prison with the possibility of parole after 34 years.
Chancey Luna was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole for being the one responsible for firing the weapon at Chris.
Michael Jones’ father acknowledged how badly he missed his son being home, but also recognized that the Lane family will never have theirs again either. He told news sources — while his face was soaked in tears — that he drives past the memorial around twice a month to pray for Chris and his family. He also said, “if giving up my son’s life meant that they could have theirs, I would gladly do that.”
