Sylva men plead guilty to murder, arson charges

By Carey Phillips

Jerad Buckley, 25, was sentenced to more than 13 years in prison after pleading guilty to second-degree murder in the death of Lynn Rule.

Josh Duls, 18, was given more than three years active time after pleading guilty to accessory after the fact to second-degree murder.

Buckley and Duls were next-door neighbors on Allen Street and lived a short distance from Rule's residence on Drury Lane.

Both men entered guilty pleas to conspiracy to commit first-degree arson and attempted first-degree arson. Duls received a suspended sentence on those charges, while the arson and murder charges against Buckley were consolidated for sentencing.

In a plea agreement, charges of first-degree murder, robbery with a dangerous weapon, conspiracy to commit murder, conspiracy to commit robbery with a dangerous weapon, two counts of attempted first-degree murder and two counts of conspiracy to commit first-degree murder were dismissed against Buckley.

Judge Ronald Payne sentenced Buckley to not less than 162 nor more than 204 months. He will be given credit for time served since his arrest in March.

Duls was sentenced to not less than 38 nor more than 55 months on the accessory charge. He will receive credit for the time served since his March arrest.

On each of the arson charges, Duls was sentenced to not less than 25 nor more than 39 months suspended for five years. He is to serve one year of intensive probation and four years of supervised probation.

Charges dropped against Duls as part of a plea agreement include conspiracy to commit murder, conspiracy to commit robbery with a dangerous weapon, two counts of conspiracy to commit first-degree murder and two counts of attempted first-degree murder.

Buckley and Duls went to Rule's home on Jan. 18 and attempted to set it on fire using a small quantity of kerosene, Assistant District Attorney Frank Lay said in court Monday. Rain stopped the fire from spreading and only charring occurred, Lay said.

Authorities had previously said Rule and another woman were in the house sleeping when the incident happened around 2 a.m.

Lay said there was "potential drug involvement" between Rule and Buckley, which "may or may not be the case." He said Buckley went to Rule's residence on Feb. 3 and stabbed her multiple times. Her body was found Feb. 5 by a friend, the same woman who had been living with Rule when the attempted arson occurred, but who had moved out after that incident.

Waynesville attorney Reid Brown, who represented Buckley on the charges, said his client had "a long history of substance abuse," had been addicted to cocaine and there was "some question about his state of mind" at the time of the murder. Brown said the victim was responsible for some of Buckley's conduct but acknowledged that was no excuse for his actions.

"(His addiction) had gotten so bad that he had no control over his desires," Brown said.

Buckley had undergone a psychological evaluation and was found competent to stand trial, Lay said.

No evidence was found to suggest that Duls was present when Rule was killed, Lay said. In addition, Duls cooperated with law enforcement officers in the investigation. Duls' involvement, Lay said, included helping Buckley burn clothes he had been wearing at the time of the murder and burying a knife, the suspected murder weapon. Duls later took authorities to the knife, according to Lay.

Sylva attorney Raymond Large, who represented Duls, said his client was "a young man with too much time on his hands" and who possibly had "a lack of guidance."

"I have seen a turnaround in him," Large said of Duls since his arrest. "He has developed a plan to help himself. This young man has a future, and I think he's going to make it."

Both men were assigned to the DART Program for substance abuse treatment during their confinement.

Prior to Monday's guilty plea, Duls had no prior record. Buckley had previous convictions for misdemeanor breaking and entering and driving while impaired.

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