Ruger .22-caliber revolver from the Andrews case

The Ruger .22-caliber revolver from the Andrews case was one of the two firearms Lowell Lee Andrews armed himself with before killing his sister and parents on the evening of November 28. First carried in a hip holster while he entered the parlor with a rifle, the revolver became the weapon he used against his father after the initial shooting.

Preparation and Carry

At home for Thanksgiving week, Lowell Lee Andrews finished reading the last chapter of The Brothers Karamazov, shaved, and changed into his best suit. He then loaded a semi-automatic .22-caliber rifle and the Ruger revolver. He placed the revolver in a hip holster and carried the rifle down the hall to the parlor, where his family was watching television.

Use in the Killings

Andrews began the attack with the rifle. After shooting his sister and mother, he turned to his father, who remained alive and moved toward the kitchen. At the kitchen threshold, Andrews drew the revolver and fired it; he reloaded and fired again. The account states that his father was struck by seventeen bullets altogether, though it does not specify how many came from each firearm.

Place in the Account

The revolver’s role is distinct from the rifle’s: it was carried as a second loaded weapon, then drawn during the attack on Andrews’s father. The account’s step-by-step sequence—the holstered gun, its later use, and its reloading—makes the revolver a concrete part of the killings’ chronology rather than merely an item in the preparation.