High-profile accusation in Soldotna: LaShaunda Lewis, a traveling nurse, faces a serious charge — First-degree murder charge.
The Alaska State Troopers describe a sequence: welfare check, 911 call, then the death of John “Skip” Dove Jr.
The suspect, a behavioral health nurse at Central Peninsula Hospital, was renting a room from the victim — Traveling nurse in Soldotna.
Investigators mention a state of confusion, self-inflicted injuries, and a scene marked by recovered household weapons.
The file queries mental health, the dynamics of cohabitation, and the hospital environment of the Kenai Peninsula.
The community mourns a respected man, while justice assesses evidence, possible motive, and responsibilities — Local victim, respected veteran.
| Quick Focus |
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| Location: Soldotna, Kenai Peninsula (Alaska); investigation by Alaska State Troopers. |
| Person involved: 31-year-old female, traveling nurse in behavioral health, originally from Virginia. |
| Charge: first-degree murder, according to a criminal complaint filed on Thursday. |
| Victim: John “Skip” Dove Jr., 78 years old, long-time resident, deceased Tuesday afternoon. |
| Residential link: sublease from the victim for about 3 months; relationship described as platonic cohabitation. |
| Welfare check: Monday around 7 PM, intervention after a concerned relative’s call; the nurse was crying but refused immediate access to mental health resources. |
| 911 call: Tuesday just before 4 PM, call made from the victim’s phone by a crying woman, according to the affidavit. |
| Findings: victim found with multiple stab wounds; suspect had self-inflicted wounds and was hospitalized. |
| Material evidence: walking stick, ice pick, incomplete knife block; signs of breaking and entering into a room; bed appeared to have been used by one person. |
| Statements (hospital): fatigue after 12 hours of service, took a sleeping pill, expressed a desire to go to the hospital; mentioned a struggle and fragmented memories, according to investigators. |
| Reported perception: belief, without context, that the victim wanted to kill her, according to the affidavit of the trooper in charge. |
| Legal status: interview stopped after requesting a lawyer; the suspect remains presumed innocent. |
| Hospital: Central Peninsula Hospital (Soldotna); no comment on employment status; cooperation with authorities; the person is receiving care. |
| Timeline: welfare check Monday evening → death Tuesday afternoon → complaint filed Thursday. |
Timeline of Events
Monday starts with a welfare check in Soldotna, requested by a concerned relative. A family member of LaShaunda Lewis reports crying on the phone, without an understandable reason, triggering intervention by the Alaska State Troopers. The officers find John “Skip” Dove Jr. alive, courteous, and describing a stressed roommate, refusing to engage with him. Lewis mentions a psychological evaluation, then declines immediate access to the mental health resources offered.
On Tuesday afternoon, a 911 call rings in from Dove‘s line, with a female voice crying and panting. First responders discover Lewis gravely injured with wounds that the troopers believe to be self-inflicted, requiring surgery. Rescue teams find Dove lying on the ground, suffering from multiple stab wounds, according to the sworn affidavit.
The Key Players
The suspect, 31 years old and from Virginia, works as a traveling nurse on the Kenai Peninsula. She has been subleasing a room from Dove, a local figure aged 78, for three months. The man is a widower, a Vietnam veteran, an avid golfer, and an artist, as reported by the investigator in a personal note from the affidavit.
The link between the two individuals is characterized as ‘platonic’ cohabitation by Lewis during her hospital interrogation. She works at the Central Peninsula Hospital as a behavioral health nurse and claims to spend most of her time working or in her room. Occasional shared meals punctuate a cohabitation described as functional, without particular intimacy.
Law Enforcement Intervention
The Alaska State Troopers first encounter a calm home, a kind host, and a professional in evident psychological distress. The trooper engages on the ground floor, then upstairs, facing a Lewis hesitant about what to do. Immediate access to psychiatric help is offered and then declined, and the officers leave the scene without noting any apparent infractions.
The next day, the emergency call leads to the same location, transformed into a crime scene described in detail in the affidavit. The troopers catalog a bed that seems to have been used by a single person, and signs of breaking and entering into a room. A walking stick, an ice pick, and an incomplete knife block are among the items seized.
Suspect’s Statements at the Hospital
Lewis mentions a 12-hour shift and a weekend of ‘confused mind’. She states that she took a sleeping pill, then asked Dove to drive her to the hospital to meet a head nurse or mental health director. She says she got into his truck, suddenly fearing, without clear context, that the man wanted to kill her.
Her account becomes fragmented as she describes a confrontation in Dove’s room, followed by a poorly remembered struggle. The injuries noted on her body are, according to the troopers, self-inflicted, one of which required urgent surgical intervention. A relative present at the hospital advises her to invoke her right to a lawyer, ending the official interview.
Charge and Procedural Framework
The judicial authority retains a charge of first-degree murder, based on the criminal complaint filed on Thursday. The reported elements stem from an affidavit signed by investigator Kevin Gill, detailing observations, seized items, and statements made. The Central Peninsula Hospital confirms cooperation with authorities and indicates that the person involved is currently receiving care.
The reported information describes allegations under investigation, recorded in an ongoing criminal file. The employer does not comment on the contractual status of the nurse, citing legal and medical constraints. Upcoming hearings will clarify detention, representation, and procedural timeline, under the watchful eye of the local community.
The presumption of innocence remains intact.
Local Resonance and Portrait of the Victim
The account of the investigation mentions a respected man, a veteran sailor, artist, and award-winning golfer, rooted in Soldotna. Relatives describe a friendly, patient neighbor, attentive to others, adhering to a strong ethic of help. The brutal death of a well-known septuagenarian exacerbates the collective need for credible and substantiated answers.
The sensitivity of the case leads authorities to a methodical phase of investigation, focused on material evidence. The seized items, the topography of the location, and the chronology of calls will form the evidentiary backbone. Forensic examinations will clarify trajectories, injury mechanisms, and timings compatible with the statements.
The investigation is progressing under judicial control.
Contextual Elements and Resources
The work of a traveling nurse involves mobility, possible isolation, and sustained clinical demands in remote regions. The psychological dynamics related to caregiving professions question prevention, a theme also addressed by health tourism and its contemporary derivatives. Early detection of distress remains a major challenge for teams.
Mobile professionals sometimes form bonds with the areas they traverse, balancing nature and personal reflection. Some extend their stays towards coastal spaces, like the hidden inlets of the pink granite coast, sought for their tranquility. The question of equipping for daily life also arises, leading to the toiletry bag designed for mobility.
The readership interested in international horizons intersects with economic and hospitality topics. Income comparisons, such as the average salary in Turkey, feed reflections on professional mobility. Exceptional establishments, like the new Four Seasons hotel in Rabat, also illustrate travel trajectories outside the strict medical sphere.
A community seeks answers.
