Overview of Charles Netherland
Charles William "Binx" Netherland was only 25 years old when he was shot and killed. He was a father, brother, and son. Charles loved to fish and spend time with his two children. Police immediately ruled Charles' death as a suicide, however his family believes otherwise.
In the early morning hours of August 18, 2012, Charles William “Binx” Netherland was at his cousin, Robert Ross’ home with friends. They were all hanging out, drinking and singing karaoke. At one point in the evening, Charles was talking with Hank Smith, and their friends asked them to take the conversation upstairs as they were getting loud. According to Smith, Charles was distraught over a recent domestic dispute between Charles and the mother of one of his children. Smith told Charles he was going to make them both a drink in the kitchen. When Smith returned, Charles was pointing a .45 mm semi-automatic pistol to his head. Charles was allegedly saying “Well I’m ready…I’m ready to go n**ga”. Hank tried to remove the gun from Charles but was pushed onto the bed before Charles’ pulled the trigger. The gun belonged to Robert Ross, who allegedly was the only one with the key to the gun cabinet. However, it is unconfirmed if Robert had given Hank the key to the gun cabinet prior to the shooting.
His family adamantly believes that foul play was involved. Upon learning of her son's death his mother, Peggy wasted no time to set up a Facebook page for her son. In an article, Peggy believes that at the time of Charles' death, he was intoxicated nearly four times the legal limit making it impossible for him to shoot himself. While there is not much publicly available information on Charles and his case, his family are actively seeking justice for Charles. Two months after his death, a friend, Steven Booth organized a protest to encourage police to dig deeper into Charles' case. If you have any information regarding Charles William "Binx" Netherland, please contact the Muscatine Police Department: (563) 263-9922.