Another decades-old cold case has led to an arrest in Christian County. According to a Christian County Sheriff's Office news release, a Bruner man has been indicted for murder nearly 30 years after a man was found dead in his garage from a shotgun wound.
The CCSO announced Monday, Aug. 10 that James Deckard, 47, was arrested in relation to the 1997 homicide of John W. "Jack" Housh. According to the release, in November 1997, Housh was discovered dead in his garage in Bruner. He was a 62-year-old farmer, according to News-Leader archives. Despite investigations and several follow-up efforts, the case went cold. News-Leader archives suggest law enforcement had a strong suspect in the case but did not believe evidence at the time would amount to a conviction.
The sheriff's office noted that in 2025, it conducted a comprehensive review of the case and reexamined the evidence, which resulted in additional investigate work and the filing of charges against Deckard and a grand jury indictment.
The state's request for Deckard's arrest warrant alleges that he murdered Housh by shooting him in the face with a shotgun after becoming angry when Housh refused to sell him a Camaro. According to the document, Deckard has prior convictions for child molestation, forgery and has fled from law enforcement before. Deckard would have been almost 19 years old at the time of the crime.
Deckard is being held on a charge of first-degree murder at the Christian County Jail at no bond.
This is the second decades-old cold case the Christian County Sheriff's Office has broken within a week. On Aug. 3, a man was arrested on charges related to the 1988 disappearance of seven-months-pregnant Ronna Bremer.
Marta Mieze covers local government at the News-Leader. Have feedback, tips or story ideas? Contact her at mmieze@news-leader.com.
This article originally appeared on Springfield News-Leader: Christian County breaks another cold case, arrests man for 1997 murder
