E. Ore. man, 62, gets 11 years for murder plot against teen
BAKER CITY, Ore. (AP) - An Ontario, Ore., man has been sentenced to 11 years in prison for a plot the prosecution said involved turning his garage into a death chamber for the teenager who fathered his grandson.
The sentence Thursday comes after Lester Earl Reger, 62, was convicted of attempted aggravated murder and other charges.
He was accused of plotting with his wife and two other people to kill Ramon Fry, then 19, of Garden Valley, Idaho. Shot in the head and back, the community college student escaped and survived.
Fry said he had been married to the Regers' daughter and was returning the child after a visitation in February under terms of their divorce settlement.
The prosecution said the garage was lined with plastic sheets to hide evidence, and a vehicle was readied to remove the body.
"In 26 years of violence, very few things have scared me as much as walking into that garage that night," said Malheur County District Attorney Dan Norris. "It was a death chamber."
Reger faked an arm injury, concealed a gun in the sling, and asked Fry to pick up three pieces of wood from beneath a work bench, Fry told investigators.
"I knew something wasn't right," Fry testified at the trial held in Baker County. "And I heard this pop. It was the loudest noise I've ever heard in my life."
He said Reger took a swing, the sling came off, revealing the weapon, and he ran. Investigators said Reger got off another shot.
Fry said doctors found the first bullet wedged under his skin at the base of his skull.
Norris said an attempt to improvise a hollow-point bullet left it with too little mass to penetrate Fry's skull.
Fry said the second bullet remains lodged near his kidney because removing it would threaten his life.
Wounded, Fry ran down a hill and flagged down a couple in a car, who stopped even though his hands and face were bloody, his legs were spattered with mud and one of his shoes was missing.
Reger testified that had wrested the gun from Fry, whom he suspected of abusing the boy, now 2. Norris said the allegation had been disproved by multiple agencies.
The other conspirators are serving 90-month sentences, including Reger's wife, Erlene, who authorities say lured Fry into the garage, and John Fritz and Todd Mulvaine.
Fritz told investigators he heard Reger and Mulvaine making the plan, including a $1,200 payment to Mulvaine for getting the gun and burying Fry's body.
Reger served time after he was convicted in a 1985 plea bargain for the beating death of his then-wife, Simone Reger, whose body was found in the Snake River.
(Copyright 2012 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)
Some people just need killing
This Be Some Tweaker Shakespeare!
Reger murdered ONCE BEFORE!!! Just goes to show you what happens when we let murders free!! 11 years? He should have gotten LIFE.Â
I'm glad the young man escaped and healed okay. This story illustrates a lot about what is wrong with guns in Oregon and the justice system. This murderer got out of prison on a plea deal. Â He was able to bargain for a gun. Â And he was able to use that gun on a hapless victim. Â We need to do more to keep guns out of the hands of criminals, along with stricter sentencing for murderers. Â 11 years? Â Not nearly enough, either.
 @Baldr Odinson Do you really believe stricter laws will keep guns out of the hands of criminals? The criminals will always find a way to get a hold of guns from other criminals! If they were to remove our rights to bare arms, we would be at the mercy of the gun wielding criminals!
I, for one am glad I can protect myself when needed!
You are what is wrong!
 @UsaidWHAT  @Baldr Odinson Yes, he really believes that...or at least it's what comes out of his ignorant mouth over and over and over like a broken record. There isn't even much use in giving him facts or explaining things to him in a rational way...because he doesn't care and he's not smart enough to pay attention. All he cares about is pushing his rabid anti-gun agenda.
Bystander had it totally right here. This guy BEAT his wife to death and threw her body in the river! Do you REALLY think that more gun control laws would have stopped him from committing THIS crime? Give me a break! Balder...why don't you take your ball and go home?
 @calmplexx Start with MUCH harsher punishments for crime. Don't let criminals out of jail early because of a lack of room. House them in tents and put their sorry butts to work! Commit the crime, do HARD time. For violent sex offenders and murderers, forget prison. Execution saves money. We already HAVE laws that say that criminals can't have guns. Criminals DON'T OBEY LAWS. Every U.S. citizen should be taught gun safety and how to SHOOT a gun. Our society has evolved into a very unsafe place...and it isn't because law abiding citizens have guns.
@drinkmorewater @SwiftlyJust @UsaidWHAT @Baldr Odinson Gun safety used used to be taught in schools. We shot 22 shorts at targets in the cafeteria at Marshfield in the 70s. Liberals had it removed.
   @SwiftlyJust  @UsaidWHAT  @Baldr Odinson you are right to address guns and nuts.  The shooter that killed over 30 on the W. Virginia campus was on psyche meds as well as the woman that killed officer Kincully. They did not buy there weapons from jailbirds. Hopefully there are some politicians working on a law to prevent gun permits to unstable folks. Gun ownership is fine.  Reality is it should be taught in school.  Everyone should be taught to disarm a weapon. Â
 @SwiftlyJust  @UsaidWHAT  @Baldr Odinson Question is, then how do YOU propose keeping guns outta the hands of guys like this? Who the hell wants people who hear voices in their heads, who are on anti psychotic or anti depressants, who have drug/alcohol addictions , or nut jobs such as Lester Regner, to have guns? Somehow they keep getting them, so something sure as hell aint workin. Tell us how to make it work...
 @Baldr Odinson The story illustrates what's wrong with the justice system and with the people who planned this murder, including the perpetrator who had killed previously. He could have used a knife or a hammer and the result would have been just as bad. When you focus on the weapon used, you take the focus off the actual cause that needs remedying. Remember, this man managed to kill before--without a gun. How is that any less tragic or important than this instance?
@bystander @Baldr Odinson Baldr Odinson is a singularly focused buffoon who thinks every thing bad that has happened is the result of not enough gun control.