Lana Rae and Randy pictured in 2015. (Screengrab via TMZ)
The wife of former Eagles member Randy Meisner was found shot dead at the couple’s home in Studio City. TMZ reports that Lana Rae Meisner, 63, was killed on March 6.
The gossip site says that less than two hours before cops were called to the home after reports of a shooting, Lana called the LAPD to report domestic violence at the home. She apparently said that her husband, 69, had a BB gun and was “acting erratically.”
Police say it appears Lara Meisner accidentally shot herself, and her husband is not a suspect, TMZ reports.
Here’s what you need to know:
1. Randy Was Hospitalized After Lana Was Found Dead
Lana Rae Meisner pictured with her husband in February 2015. (Twitter)
The call about a shooting went into the LAPD just before 7 p.m. local time, reports TMZ. It came from Randy Meisner who said that his wife and gone into a room in the home and moments later he heard a gun shot. When he went into the room he found Lana dead with a gunshot wound to the head. Randy was then taken to a local hospital as he was “acting erratically.” The LAPD says that he was “cooperative” with their investigation.
Lana Meisner, wife of Eagles member Randy Meisner, was tragically shot with a firearm that accidentally discharged. t.co/qetUJB0TYR
Radar Online reports that Randy told police that his wife was looking in a closet for something when one of the two guns that the couple kept there went off and killed her. Radar’s source no suicide note was found at the home. In a tweet, the LAPD described the shooting as accidental. In a statement authorities said:
After a thorough investigation by Valley Bureau detective personnel and the Los Angeles Coroner’s Office, it was determined that Mrs. Meisner’s death was accidental.
Mrs. Meisner was moving a rifle that was stored inside a case in a closet. As she lifted the rifle in the case, another item within the case shifted and hit the trigger of the rifle causing it to fire and fatally injure Mrs. Meisner.
2. She Used to Keep Him Drunk to Control His Money, Friends Say
In April 2015, TMZ reported that a friend of Randy’s, James Newton, filed legal documents saying that Lana kept Randy drunk. Newton said that she was spending his royalties and kept him inebriated because he was easier to control that way.
3. The Couple Were Together Since 1984
The couple were married in November 1996. They first met each other in 1984 and had been together ever since.
4. Randy Meisner Has Been Diagnosed as Being Bipolar & Suicidal
Eagles’ guitarist Glenn Frey passed away in January 2016. (Getty)
In the summer of 2015, Randy was diagnosed as being bipolar and suicidal. At that time he was reported to have threatened to kill his wife and others with an AK-47. Since then, he had been given a conservatorship order with his medicine being monitored by James Newton, reports the New York Daily News.
5. She Was Randy’s Second Wife, He Married His High School Sweetheart When He Was 17
Lana was Randy’s second wife. The original Eagles’ bassist married his high school sweetheart, Jennifer Barton, in 1963 when they were 17. That couple had three children, Dana Scott Meisner, 52, and twins, Heather and Eric, 45. Randy left the Eagles in September 1977 due to exhaustion. He later said of this, “All that stuff and all the arguing amongst the Eagles is over now. Well at least for me.” Randy had a solo career and was not included in the Eagles historic Hell Freezes Over tour in 1994. He did appear with his former bandmates for their 1998 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction.