Randy Scott Beallis Case: Guilty Plea, Divorce, and Bonanza Deaths

Randy Scott Beallis is a Fort Smith, Arkansas, family practice physician whose estranged wife, Charity Beallis, and their six-year-old twins, Eliana and Maverick, were found shot to death in their Bonanza, Arkansas, home on December 3, 2025, one day after the final hearing in their divorce. Autopsies later concluded that Charity died by suicide and that she killed the two children before taking her own life. Beallis, who months earlier had pleaded guilty to a reduced domestic battery charge involving Charity, was not at the home at the time of the deaths and has denied any involvement in the killings.¹

The February 2025 Arrest and Guilty Plea

Beallis was arrested on February 16, 2025, after allegedly choking Charity in front of their children. The initial charges were aggravated assault on a family member, third-degree domestic battery, and two counts of endangering the welfare of a minor.²

On October 9, 2025, he pleaded guilty before Judge R. Gunner DeLay to a single reduced count of third-degree domestic battery, a Class A misdemeanor. He received a one-year suspended imposition of sentence, was fined $1,500 plus $150 in court costs, and was ordered to complete a domestic violence program by May 2026.³ A no-contact order prohibited him from contacting Charity or any member of her family.²

The Divorce and the Final Hearing

Charity filed for divorce on March 5, 2025, weeks after the arrest, under case number 66GDR-25-40. She went through four attorneys and ultimately represented herself at the final hearing on December 2, 2025. At the close of that hearing, the court ordered joint custody of the twins. Transcripts showed Charity had expressed a wish to reconcile, which did not occur. The judge’s oral ruling was not reduced to a written final order before the following morning.⁴

December 3, 2025: The Deaths in Bonanza

Deputies arrived at the Beallis home in Bonanza after 9:30 a.m. on December 3, 2025, for a welfare check. Inside, they found Charity Beallis, 40, and her six-year-old twins, Eliana and Maverick, dead of gunshot wounds.⁵

All windows and doors were shut and locked. The home’s security alarm had been deactivated at 10 p.m. the previous night. Investigators used Tesla vehicle location data and cell tower records to establish that Randall Beallis was not near the residence when the deaths occurred.⁶

On March 4, 2026, the Sebastian County Sheriff’s Office announced the Arkansas State Crime Lab’s findings. Capt. Philip Pevehouse said Charity’s death was ruled a suicide and the twins’ deaths were ruled homicides, and that the investigation concluded Charity killed the children before killing herself. Investigators found no evidence contradicting the Crime Lab, and no criminal charges were filed against anyone else. The case remained technically open pending electronic forensic results tied to outstanding search warrants.⁷⁶

What Charity’s Family Said

Charity’s adult son, John Randall Powell, and her father, Randy Powell, spoke publicly after the deaths. John Powell told NewsNation’s Banfield that his mother had feared Beallis and had sought help for months. “She begged for nine months for somebody to listen to her and protect her and them kids, but it seemed like nobody wanted to listen,” he said. According to Powell, Charity had confided in multiple people, including a state legislator.¹

Randy Powell alleged that Beallis had killed Charity “for financial gain and because of hatred.” John Powell said: “My mother fought for nine months, the last nine months, to save her life and them babies, and nothing happened. Now all three of them is dead.”⁸ Beallis denied any involvement.¹

The Fight Over the Unentered Divorce Decree

Because the December 2 divorce ruling was oral and never entered as a written order, the marriage’s legal status became disputed. On December 4, 2025, Beallis’s attorney moved to dismiss the divorce case, arguing that without a finalized written order, Beallis should be considered Charity’s widower. He filed another motion on December 11 asking the court not to enter the decree.⁹

On December 8, attorney Wayland Parker notified the court that he represented John Powell, who sought to have the divorce entered posthumously and to be appointed administrator of Charity’s estate. That same day, Judge Shannon L. Blatt ordered the case “abated.” On December 17, 2025, Judge Blatt ruled that her own abatement order had stripped her jurisdiction to hear further motions, freezing the proceedings.¹⁰ If the divorce is never finalized, Beallis could claim rights as surviving spouse with implications for inheritance, life insurance, and the family’s assets. The dispute was unresolved as of the latest reporting.

Medical License and Related Proceedings

Randall S. Beallis holds a Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine degree. His Arkansas family practice license, issued in June 2008, is listed as active and unlimited through February 2027, with no board orders on file.¹¹ In January 2026, reporting indicated that Beallis was appealing an Arkansas State Police finding of child maltreatment, and that the Arkansas State Medical Board had held a panel meeting regarding him in August 2025.¹²

1
NewsNation. Arkansas Murders Domestic Violence
2
Fox 5 DC. Arkansas Woman, Children Found Dead Day After Final Divorce Hearing
3
Arkansas Courts. State v. Randy Scott Beallis, 66GCR-25-31
4
People. Arkansas Mom, Kids Found Dead After Divorce Hearing
5
KATV. Autopsies Rule Arkansas Mother’s Death a Suicide, Twin Children’s Deaths Homicides
6
KARK. Sheriff Releases Details in Death of Mother and Two Children in Sebastian County
7
River Valley Democrat-Gazette. Charity Beallis Died of Suicide, Sebastian County
8
KNWA. Family Speaks Out After Death of Charity Powell, Children
9
4029 TV. Charity Beallis, Randall Powell, Judge Divorce
10
River Valley Democrat-Gazette. Judge Says Her Own Order of Abatement in Beallis
11
Arkansas State Medical Board. Verify a Licensee – Randall S. Beallis
12
River Valley Democrat-Gazette. Fort Smith Physician Randy Beallis Appeals