John Jefferson
Left: Alexander Geesy (46th Judicial Circuit Prosecuting Attorney). Right: William Randall Coomer, Jr. (Obituary).
An Indiana man will spend the next several decades behind bars for the inexplicable murder of a Marine Corps veteran who was shot in the back at a far-flung, rural cemetery after sticking up for his wife.
On June 27, Alexander Geesy, 20, was found guilty of murder and obstruction of justice by a jury in Delaware County. Jurors also determined he was subject to a firearm sentencing enhancement, according to the 46th Judicial District Prosecuting Attorney.
On Friday, he was sentenced to 66 years in state prison by Delaware County Circuit Court No. 5 Judge Thomas A. Cannon Jr., who described the since-condemned man as “a cowardly misfit without a conscience who only gained courage from strapping a gun on his hip.”
Geesy was sentenced to 56 years in prison for the murder conviction, according to a press release issued by the prosecutor’s office. Another 10 years were meted out due to the firearm enhancement.
On July 22, 2022, Geesy and several friends traveled in separate cars to Sharp Cemetery in Daleville — a small town roughly an hour northeast of Indianapolis. The reason for the visit was just to look at gravestones, one of the friends later told police, according to court documents obtained by Indianapolis-based Fox affiliate WXIN.
Unfortunately, for 38-year-old William Randall Coomer, he and his wife lived on one of the roads nearby and necessary to reach the cemetery.
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The group of four adults and three youths allegedly first came upon Coomer’s wife when she was parked along the side of the road to get her mail, according to the court documents. As the cars passed, one of them nearly hit her, the woman later told police. And, she said, the people in one car shouted profanities and gestured similarly.
Stephanie Coomer then drove home and told her husband what happened, the document says. The man decided to drive down to the cemetery and confront the drivers. According to his wife, the soon-to-be victim just planned on lecturing the group about safer driving.
After Coomer got to the cemetery, he was allegedly irate the cars had sped down the road — and because some people in one of the cars yelled at and flipped off his wife, witnesses later told law enforcement. And, he let them know how mad he was — verbally.
At some point, an altercation between Coomer and Geesy began.
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“I’m crazy and I get a check for that s–––, don’t f––– with me,” Geesy allegedly shouted at Coomer, one of the witnesses said.
The witnesses said the incident grew more hectic and heated — with Coomer allegedly hitting Geesy, who then drew a gun. Geesy allegedly escalated the incident — ordering Coomer to get down on the ground before he fired a warning shot.
Instead of complying, Coomer ran towards his truck. Then, Geesy fired again — striking the retreating man in the back.
Stephanie Coomer was on the phone with her husband during the final moments of her life, she later told police. Just after 2 p.m., she recalled hearing “metal clanging sounds” and rushed to the cemetery.
There, she found her husband lying in a ditch.
He had been shot through the heart.
The victim was eulogized at length in his obituary:
Randall was a graduate of New Castle Chrysler High School and proudly served his country in the United States Marine Corps. He loved and was proud of his Marine Corps brotherhood. Randall married his soulmate and love of his life, Stephanie (Ling) Coomer on June 6, 2011. He was a hell of a tree guy and proud business owner of That Tree Feller serving this community. He was a diehard Colts fan and was very excited, for the first time, to be a season ticket holder for this upcoming season. Randall had the best sense of humor, and many believed he was a “professional” storyteller. He loved making people laugh and enjoyed being around kids. Although he would never admit it, he loved all his animals very much that were on Coomer Farm. Randall was a man’s man and if he was your friend, you knew you had a friend for life. He was someone you could always count on to be there when you needed him.
“I am eternally grateful to all of the officers and detectives in Delaware County,” the victim’s widow said in a statement after the killer was arrested. “He was my entire world my heart and soul and I hope they pay for what they did to him.”
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