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Cops take new look at Rice murder case
After 18 years, new DNA technology may yield clues in shooting.

By Carolyn Smith

A Teton County sheriff's deputy recently reactivated an 18-year-old murder investigation, citing new DNA technology that could shed light on the crime.

Deputy Lloyd Funk was a junior at Jackson Hole High School when Jon William Rice was murdered at his Aspens apartment in May 1984. Now, Funk is leading a new round of investigations in the case.

"If we have cooperation with the community and with the crime lab, it's a very solvable case," Funk said. "But we're going to need a few breaks here and there."

Rice was a 26-year-old loan officer for First Wyoming Bank when he was murdered. The murder took place at his Berry Patch condominium in the Aspens subdivision.

He was found May 12 by his running partner. Investigators determined that he was shot in the back of the head with a .22-caliber rifle.

Although sheriff's deputies still have the murder weapon, which belonged to Rice's roommate, no prints were retrievable. Rice's roommate was out of town at the time of the murder.

People speculated that Rice could have been murdered by a jealous boyfriend or husband or that he could have been involved in drug deals.

A possible link to a second unsolved murder adds mystery to the case. Five weeks after Rice's death, Lisa Ehlers was shot twice and killed at a pullout on U.S. Highway 191 near Bondurant.

Funk said evidence taken at the scene of Rice's murder suggests someone was with him the night he died. He would not detail the evidence but said, "We can take a closer look at it now and read a little more into the case."

Funk urged anyone who might have been with Rice or might have any information to step forward.

"Maybe some people in the community have knowledge that they don't think they have," Funk said. He said he wanted to use any avenue possible to solve the case.

He has printed advertisements in the Jackson Hole News for three weeks to try to get the word out about the investigation.

"There are still a lot of people we interviewed that still live around here," Funk said. "Our department is really big on solving this case. It's one of the biggest cases that happened in Teton County."

Funk can be contacted at 733-2052. Information can be given anonymously.

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