A $10 gold necklace and murder: The confrontation that cost Preston Lord his life

Corrections & Clarifications: Details about the ownership of the gold chain were incorrect in a previous version of the article.

A $10 gold necklace likely cost Preston Lord his life.

Prosecutors say the theft of the necklace from one of Lord's friends set in motion events that led to the 16-year-old's fatal beating at an Oct. 28 Halloween party in Queen Creek.

They say his attackers snatched the chain, and when Lord and his friends attempted to get it back, a confrontation erupted — then Lord and his friends ran away.

His attackers gave chase, caught Lord, and in a matter of seconds beat him and left him lying on the side of a street, prosecutors said. Lord died two days later on Oct. 30 of traumatic brain injuries.

Prosecutors describe the stealing of the necklace as the catalyst for a sequence of events. They said it was not the motive for the attack.

The Maricopa County Attorney's Office shared details of what led to Lord's murder with The Arizona Republic. It is the first time officials have publicly discussed what prompted the attack and why seven people were indicted.

Maricopa County Attorney Rachel Mitchell said robbery wasn't the overarching component of the killing that could send three juveniles to prison for life and leave four adults facing the death penalty.

His 'life will continue to shine': Preston Lord's parents speak out after arrests

Mitchell and her office are instead focusing on how the beating played out — and making a case for charging each of Lord's assailants with first- and second-degree murder and kidnapping.

"Obviously, I'm more focused as a prosecutor on proving the acts and who was involved," she told The Arizona Republic on Thursday. "What I would just say is nothing's off the table. No one is off the table."

A grand jury on Wednesday indicted seven people in Lord's murder. They are Treston Billey, 18, William "Owen" Hines, 18, Jacob Meisner, 17, Talan Renner, 17, Taylor Sherman, 19, Dominic Turner, 20, and Talyn Vigil, 17.

"I don't want to get into a lot of details about who actually did the hands on," she said, declining to talk about the attack on Lord or who delivered what blows.

Her office did not identify the boy whose necklace was stolen because he is a minor. Prosecutors referred to him as a second victim.

County attorney: Ties between 'Gilbert Goons' and Lord homicide

Mitchell acknowledged "crossover" in Lord's death and a series of attacks carried out by a gang of mostly affluent teenagers known as the "Gilbert Goons." Two of the seven people so far charged in his death, Hines and Meisner, face separate charges related to multiple Goon assaults going back to 2022.

A Dec. 14 investigation by The Arizona Republic detailed how Lord's death was tied to the Goons, who recorded their blitz-style attacks on teens in parks and parking garages, outside fast-food restaurants and at house parties.

Most of the attacks occurred in Gilbert and went unchecked by police there for more than a year. Other Goon attacks were recorded in Mesa, Chandler and Pinal County. There's no evidence yet that any attack occurred in Queen Creek before the one on Lord.

"You had a very, very large party with a lot of kids," Mitchell said. "And so you have the group that was with Preston and, of course, then you had the other group and, for whatever reason, there was a decision made."

Mitchell detailed what led to the first-degree murder charge, which often is associated with premeditation. Lord's attackers met the first-degree murder charge threshold because they killed him during the commission of other felonies, specifically kidnapping, she said.

That doesn't mean Lord's alleged assailants took him somewhere against his will. Under Arizona law, you can be guilty of kidnapping if you restrain someone or prevent someone from moving.

In addition to kidnapping, Billey, Meisner and Turner are charged with aggravated robbery for snatching the gold necklace, Mitchell said.

The seven charged in the murder also could face second-degree murder charges, which Mitchell described as an "and/or" charge for a jury to consider if the case goes to trial.

A jury could convict on a second-degree murder charge as an alternative to a first-degree murder charge, or it could convict defendants of both.

"It involves extreme indifference to human life," Mitchell said. "It gives the jury options to look at as the case develops in front of the trial jury — whether they want to convict on both or just want to convict on one."

Defendants face death penalty, life in prison

Meisner, Renner and Vigil are all being tried as adults. They face a maximum of life in prison because juveniles in Arizona cannot be sentenced to death.

Prosecutors could seek the death penalty against Billey, Hines, Sherman and Turner.

Mitchell said that decision ultimately will be hers to make. But it will come after a rigid, long-standing procedure of review and recommendation by a senior team of attorneys in her office.

"The final decision is solely mine as to whether to allege the death penalty," Mitchell said. "And when I do it, I'm looking for a couple things. Number one, evidence that will stand up over decades, literally decades, because that's how long it is taking cases to get to the point of execution."

Adult turns himself in: 7th person arrested in Preston Lord homicide case

On Dec. 28, the two-month anniversary of Lord's fatal beating, Queen Creek police referred charges against seven people in the murder of Lord to the County Attorney's Office.

Indictments are nothing more than a formal accusation. They are the first stages of the prosecution and signal the start of what could be a lengthy court process. Mitchell said she expects court cases tied to the Lord homicide will take more than a year to adjudicate.

As investigation continues, more charges and arrests possible

Mitchell also made clear more charges — and more arrests — could come as the investigation unfolds.

Mitchell also said additional issues were under consideration. Those include whether to designate the Gilbert Goons as a criminal street gang, which could lead to enhanced charges against some of Lord's attackers and members involved in other beatings. Since January, she said, her office has initiated the prosecution of 20 people for attacks tied to the Goons.

Mitchell also left open the possibility of "tampering" charges against anyone who helped to hide evidence in Lord's beating death.

A former employee of a Chandler media agency owned by Renner's father has accused him of trying to cover up his son's involvement in Lord's death.

Ashley Reynolds said Travis Renner and his business partner, Adam Kifer, plotted to protect Talan Renner by moving him out of town and hiding hand injuries he sustained in the beating.

Reynolds said the pair also concocted a plan to pin the killing on Talyn Vigil since his name is so similar to Talan Renner's.

Queen Creek police Chief Randy Brice confirmed detectives investigating Lord's homicide interviewed Reynolds in February. He told The Republic her account corroborated what investigators had learned from different sources.

Mitchell acknowledged prosecutors were aware of Reynolds' claims but said the County Attorney's Office does not independently investigate allegations raised in criminal cases.

"So anybody that has information, whether it's Ms. Reynolds or anybody else, what they should do is contact the appropriate police department," she said. "If it's related to Preston Lord's case, they should contact Queen Creek Police Department and turn that information over to them."

Mitchell emphasized her concern over rumors and speculation spread on social media about the Lord case, which she said might have prevented additional witnesses from coming forward. Online comments fueled concerns that police weren't investigating or the case must be in jeopardy because arrests weren't being made fast enough.

"You've got witnesses who may have some information who are also watching that information," she said. "They're saying, 'Well, gee, I don't want to come forward. I don't want to put myself out there because nothing's going to be done.'"

Mitchell credited community activists who helped to bring information and witnesses forward, calling them courageous. She said a prosecutor's job is to speak for the victim and the victim's family. A prosecutor has a duty to make sure every case is airtight, she said.

"I can't imagine what it would be like to send your kid out to a Halloween party and have him not come back," Mitchell said. "That's why it's so important to me that they understand how hard we're fighting for them."

Vigil held following arrests: 'Preston's life will continue to shine'

Robert Anglen is an investigative reporter for The Republic. Reach him at robert.anglen@arizonarepublic.com. Follow him on X: @robertanglen.

Reach reporter Elena Santa Cruz at elena.santacruz@gannett.com or 480-466-2265. Follow her on X: @ecsantacruz3.

This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Preston Lord murder case: What sparked the fatal confrontation