Opelika man charged with killing stepfather in Lee County

An Opelika man has been charged with murder in the shooting death of his stepfather.

The Lee County Sheriff’s Office says around 7:15 last night, they got a 911 call from a person reporting a body in the 500 block of Lee County Road 126, which is in the Salem community.

Deputies arrived to find 69-year-old James Barnett sitting in a chair in the front yard with what appeared to be a single gunshot wound to the forehead. The address was his home.

Deputies arrested 51-year-old Richard Lee Huguley, charging him with murder. Huguley is being held in the Lee County Detention Center without bail, awaiting an Aniah’s Law hearing.

Barnett’s body will be sent to the Alabama Department of Forensic Sciences for a postmortem examination, the sheriff’s office said.

If you have information about this case, you’re asked to contact the Lee County Sheriff’s Office at (334) 749-5651 or CrimeStoppers at (334) 215-STOP.