A Johnson County jury sentenced Colton Contant to life in prison for shooting Kenneth Michaels at a Coal Hill park.

Arkansas juries set the punishment, and this one returned both the verdict and the sentence on Tuesday: first-degree murder, life, and 15 more years for the gun. A winter finding that Contant was competent to stand trial addresses whether he could assist his lawyer. The Democrat-Gazette's account of the trial does not describe a mental-health defense in front of the jury. Phillips's comments on Wednesday are the state's explanation after the verdict.

A Johnson County jury on Tuesday, Oct. 20, 2026, found Colton T. Contant, 26, of Coal Hill guilty of first-degree murder in the shooting death of Kenneth E. Michaels and sentenced him to life in prison, the Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette and 5NEWS reported. Both outlets reported the jury added 15 years because Contant used a firearm. The Democrat-Gazette said that added term is to be served in the Arkansas Department of Corrections. 5NEWS reported the trial opened Oct. 19 and that jurors decided guilt and punishment the next day.

Michaels, 68, of Clarksville, was found dead at Coal Hill City Park about 3:30 p.m. on Nov. 11, 2025, shot twice, the Democrat-Gazette reported, citing Arkansas State Police. 5NEWS reported Johnson County dispatch took calls of gunshots and a person on the ground at the park, and that Contant was identified and arrested shortly afterward. An affidavit cited by both outlets says Contant told investigators he opened the passenger door of Michaels' car as Michaels opened the driver's door, that Michaels flinched, and that he shot him once in the chest and a second time in the back as he fell. The Democrat-Gazette reported he then left, and that police later found the .38 revolver he said he used, spent casings, and the jacket he was wearing, in a camper on the property where he lived.

Prosecuting Attorney Jeff Phillips, whose district includes Johnson County, talked to the Democrat-Gazette on Wednesday. He called the case "extremely straightforward" and "literally a random act of violence." Phillips said Michaels was in the park to walk the trail, that Contant brought a gun, "didn't like the way he looked," and said Michaels flinched at him. "The guy showed basically no emotion and no remorse," Phillips said. He said investigators found Contant's fingerprints on the passenger side of the car, that robbery was not the motive, and that a few hundred dollars were still in Michaels' wallet. "Who knows what was going on in his head," Phillips said. "It's something that you would never expect to happen in a small town like Coal Hill at the city park."

Before that trial, the Democrat-Gazette reported, a fitness examination in December led to Contant being involuntarily committed for evaluation and treatment. A licensed professional counselor who screened him on Dec. 23 found him "actively delusional and psychotic," the paper reported from court records. By mid-January, after treatment at the Arkansas State Hospital, court records said he was fit to proceed. That finding put him back in a position to go to trial. The jury has now convicted him of the murder count and set the sentence. The presumption no longer covers that count. It remains the rule for anyone who is only accused: All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.