Authorities say the woman was identified as 40-year-old Charity Beallis; the children’s names were not released.
BONANZA, Ark. — An Arkansas mother and her two 6-year-old twins were found shot to death in a Bonanza home after a welfare check Wednesday morning, a day after a divorce hearing in Sebastian County court, according to investigators and court records.
Deputies with the Sebastian County Sheriff’s Office say they responded around 9:30 a.m. to a home on 1st Avenue, where they and Bonanza police discovered three people dead inside. The woman was identified as Charity Beallis, 40. The deaths come one day after a hearing in Beallis’s divorce case, and amid earlier domestic violence allegations involving her estranged husband. Detectives say autopsies are underway at the Arkansas State Crime Lab as they process evidence and interview witnesses. No arrests had been announced as of Saturday, and officials said they are not ruling out any scenario as the investigation continues.
Deputies said the welfare check was requested Wednesday when friends and workers could not reach the family. Two workers at the house let deputies inside, where they found Beallis and her children with apparent gunshot wounds. The sheriff’s office collected evidence, executed search warrants and transported the bodies to Little Rock for autopsies to determine the exact cause and manner of death. Family members said the children were twins. “One moment I’ll be crying, and the next minute I’m mad,” Beallis’s father, Randy Powell, said in an interview, describing the family’s shock at the killings.
Public records show Beallis filed for divorce in March after her husband’s arrest on domestic violence charges. A final hearing occurred Tuesday at the courthouse in Fort Smith. On Thursday, a motion was filed seeking to dismiss the divorce case. Court filings indicate the husband later pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor battery count in October. Investigators have not named any suspects or persons of interest in the deaths. The sheriff’s office said everyone interviewed so far is cooperating and that more search warrants may be served as evidence is processed. The children’s names have not been released, and officials have not disclosed who placed the welfare call.
The killings have drawn attention to Bonanza, a city of roughly 600 people on the Oklahoma border, about 15 miles south of Fort Smith. Deputies said the home is in the 1100 block of 1st Avenue, a residential street a few blocks from City Hall. Detectives emphasized that autopsy findings will guide next steps as they work with the prosecutor’s office. Family members say Beallis had voiced fears for her safety earlier this year while seeking custody orders for the twins. Officials have not confirmed any restraining order in effect, and they have not released information about a firearm recovered at the scene.
Authorities said the sheriff’s criminal investigations division is leading the case with assistance from Bonanza police. The medical examiner’s results are pending. If charges are filed, they would be handled in Sebastian County Circuit Court; no hearings were set as of Saturday. The sheriff’s office said additional updates will come after autopsy reports are returned and lab work is complete. Detectives plan to continue interviews and review electronic records from the home in the coming days.
Outside the home, neighbors described a steady stream of patrol cars and investigators on Wednesday as crime scene tape blocked the street. A family handout photo of Beallis circulated among friends online as relatives gathered in Fort Smith and the small border community to mourn the twins. “My mother fought for nine months … and nothing happened,” Beallis’s adult son, John Powell, said, calling the loss devastating. Residents left flowers near the address as night fell, while deputies maintained periodic patrols.
As of Saturday afternoon, investigators had not released the children’s identities or the manner of death beyond stating the victims had gunshot wounds. Autopsy results are expected to be returned in the coming days, and the sheriff’s office said further information would be released after next-of-kin notifications and laboratory reviews are complete.
Author note: Last updated December 6, 2025.