EXCLUSIVE: Eagles founder Randy Meisner's wife was killed when pair of spurs from his cowboy boots moved in a rifle case as she lifted it, causing gun to go off

  • Lana Meisner died when she accidentally discharged a rifle at the Studio City, Los Angeles, home she shared with Randy Meisner
  • Police sources reveal how freak accident was caused by spurs from a pair of cowboy boots 
  • She had called 911 and been visited by police just 90 minutes earlier after accusing the Eagles founder, 69, of domestic violence
  • Court papers reveal troubled marriage, with his adult children accusing former waitress, 63, of abusing and manipulating the bassist
  •  Papers claim Lana refused to spend on Randy's health care and instead went on luxury cruises, had plastic surgery and a lavish new kitchen 
  • 'She would ply Randy with alcohol as he was 'easier to control' when drunk and then get him to sign important letters and documents'

A pair of spurs caused the gunshot which killed the wife of former Eagles bassist Randy Meisner, Daily Mail Online can reveal.

The incident was a 'freak accident', police sources said, elaborating on the sketchy official explanation which cleared Meisner of any part in his wife's death.

The ball-bearing spurs, which belonged to the pop star and were designed to attach to the heels of his boots, were contained in a rifle case along with the gun.

Lana Meisner,63, went to the bedroom closet and lifted the case, causing the spurs to travel along it.

The spurs lodged onto the trigger firing a bullet that hit her in the face or head, killing her instantly.

Sources said the gun, which is under examination by the North Hollywood police firearms unit, would only have needed 'a feather touch' to discharge a shot.

The metal spurs along with the shank are likely to have weighed around a pound and easily have been able to pressure the trigger into firing the gun.

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Stormy marriage: The couple appeared happy in this picture in 2010. Langston tells Daily Mail Online her friend's marriage was stormy but that she received threats from another person which had her living in fear

Stormy marriage: The couple appeared happy in this picture in 2010, Meisner wrote in an application for a restraining order: 'I am afraid that... she will come to the home and become enraged and perhaps kill me.'

Lana Rae Meisner, the wife of former Eagles bassist Randy Meisner (pictured together) died Sunday after being shot in the head at the couple's Los Angeles home, police said

Lana Rae Meisner, the wife of former Eagles bassist Randy Meisner (pictured together) died Sunday after being shot in the head at the couple's Los Angeles home, police said

Last picture: A fan took the last image of the couple together when they were invited into the Meisners' home to have pictures of the Eagles bassist signed. 'They were very nice, he was working on a model car kit. He sat down and signed the stuff for us and chatted for a while,' said the fan who did not want to be named.

Last picture: A fan took the last image of the couple together when they were invited into the Meisners' home to have pictures of the Eagles bassist signed. 'They were very nice, he was working on a model car kit. He sat down and signed the stuff for us and chatted for a while,' said the fan who did not want to be named.

The Eagles star, 69, who left the band in 1977, had been married to his wife for nearly 20 years.

He co-wrote and sang on the groups biggest hits including One of These Nights and 'Take It to the Limit.'

A detective confirmed that police had received a call from the shooting victim earlier on Sunday evening at around 5.30pm and officers had listed it as a domestic incident which required no further action.

'It was an everyday argument between a husband and wife and there was no violence involved,' said the source.

'We have established that Meisner was not in the room when his wife was shot. All the forensics have shown her death to have been a freak accident.

'There will never be any charges in this case and it has been decided that it was an accidental death.'

The Los Angeles County Medical Examiner has carried out a pathology investigation into the case number 2016-01878, but has not released its findings.

The police source said he was unaware as to why the musician and his wife kept a loaded rifle in their closet, but it could have been there for self defense against any intruder.

Law enforcement sources said that Lana had reported Randy for waving a BB gun around and 'acting erratically' at approximately 5.30pm on Sunday (pictured is the front gate of their home)

Law enforcement sources said that Lana had reported Randy for waving a BB gun around and 'acting erratically' at approximately 5.30pm on Sunday (pictured is the front gate of their home)

The LAPD confirmed Lana Meinser's shooting was accidental after the rifle went off inside its case

The LAPD confirmed Lana Meinser's shooting was accidental after the rifle went off inside its case

'Putting the boot spurs inside the case was clearly a mistake because they hit the trigger, but nobody could have known that would happen.'

He said Meisner called North Hollywood police around 90 minutes after she had phoned police to report that she had been shot in an accident.

The musician, who had reportedly being diagnosed as bi-polar, was said to have been admitted to a psychiatric ward for 72 hours of treatment.

The death, however, came against a backdrop of accusations of domestic violence and a troubled marriage.

Heart attack survivor Randy was left so terrified of his wife he called police to their $1million Los Angeles home several times, court documents obtained by Daily Mail Online reveal.

The history of domestic abuse has emerged after Lana, 63, was shot in the head and died at the couple's home on Sunday night.

Around 90 minutes before Randy, 69, called police to report his wife had been killed, Lana called 911 herself to report domestic abuse.

It is a tragic plot line that ended a volatile and dysfunctional 20-year marriage, itself fueled by drug and alcohol abuse.

The full extent of the marital violence was recorded in detail back in 2010 when the celebrated musician applied for a restraining order against Lana. 

In legal papers filed at LA Superior Court on February 16, 2010, the former Eagles bassist appears to be the one who bore the full brunt of the physical abuse.

In one incident on February 9, 2010 Lana exploded in anger over a 'trivial matter' hitting her husband's chest with closed fists.

He called the police who asked Lana to leave the home and Randy said in a statement that he was left 'shaking' and 'extremely concerned' and 'afraid' that she would return and continue to attack him.

Randy detailed how there had been 'five to six' similar attacks during 2009 and the beginning of 2010 and requested an order barring Lana from returning to the marital home.

He added: 'She has a place to live with her mother, and she has perpetuated physical violence upon me. I am afraid that if Lana gets notice of this application prior to the restraining order, that she will come to the home and become enraged and perhaps kill me.'

In the request, which was never granted, Randy says he first met Lana in the early 90s when she was a cocktail waitress working in Encino, LA near to where the Eagles were rehearsing.

The couple married in November, 1996 and signed a premarital agreement stating that Randy's Studio City home would remain his sole property – a fact that would later irk Lana.

But Randy claims that later in the marriage Lana began using cocaine 'almost daily' and her need for money to buy the drug generated 'hostility' in their relationship.

He claims that during the several years prior to 2010 the couple's days would begin with Lana's verbal 'poking' at him to make him angry and spark an argument.

The Eagles legend also details a string of serious health problems, which began in 2007 with a major heart attack followed by surgery to fit a stent inside one of his arteries.

Randy said he has trouble breathing and uses an oxygen tank on a daily basis as well as a nebulizer.

He also stated that he sometimes has trouble walking and is 'significantly more fragile' than the average man his age, adding that Lana is 'physically robust' for her years.

Lana's sudden death also comes just weeks after a bitter conservatorship battle between her and Randy's family and friends was finally settled, court documents reveal.

In July last year, Los Angeles Superior Court appointed Randy's friend James Newton as his temporary conservator after he 'threatened to shoot people' with an AK-47.

It also followed several compelling testimonies from his children, friends and former employees that Lana was mistreating her husband, aiding his alcoholism and failing to take care of his health.

In the legal documents - seen by Daily Mail Online - Randy's three children Heather, Dana and Eric Meisner state how Lana 'controlled' their father and tried to sabotage their relationship with him.

The papers claim that Lana refused to spend money on Randy's health care and instead frittered it away on luxury cruises, plastic surgery and a lavish kitchen renovation.

 Founder: Randy Meisner and Glenn Frey performing together in 1973. He left the band four years later

According to law enforcement sources, Lana had called police the same evening she was found dead to report that Randy (pictured left with Eagles bandmate Glenn Frey) had been threatening her and 'acting erratically'

Randy (second left, with Eagles bandmates) has fully co-operated with the police investigation. They have concluded the firearm was accidentally discharged

Randy (second left, with Eagles bandmates) has fully co-operated with the police investigation. They have concluded the firearm was accidentally discharged

Lana would ply Randy with alcohol as he was 'easier to control' when drunk and then get him to sign important letters and documents, the court papers allege.

The petition for the conservatorship states: 'Randy's precarious health combined with his severe alcoholism will kill him... without judicial intervention and appointment of a conservator, Randy's health - in fact his very survival - are in jeopardy.'

In the 57 page court filing family and friends of Randy round on his wife and detail a series of incidents that erupted in to high drama.

Randy's daughter Heather wrote in her testimony how Lana had exerted more and more control over her father over the years of their marriage and had isolated him from all his former friends and advisers.

She stated: 'Today Lana's isolation of my father is complete. She controls who can speak to my father and who cannot.'

Heather said that when her father was hospitalized Lana instituted special passwords to prevent other family members from seeing him.

Lana is portrayed in the legal paperwork as a money grabber who was doing everything in her power to disinherit her husband's children.

She even arranged for Randy's farm in Nebraska, where his son Eric lived and worked with wife Stacey, to be sold without his knowledge, the documents allege.

Randy also repeatedly told his children and friends he wanted to divorce Lana, and once hired an attorney to draw up the documents while his wife was away on a cruise in 2012 - but she fired the attorney on her return, according to the papers.

In another declaration in support of the conservatorship, a friend of Lana's, Marla Dodd, recalled how Lana had become increasingly paranoid and admitted taking cocaine.

Tranquil: Despite the orderly scene outside the couple's home neighbors said their relationship was volatile. 'They called the police a lot. She had him arrested a couple of times,' Laurin Benson said

Tranquil: Despite the orderly scene outside the couple's home neighbors said their relationship was volatile. 'They called the police a lot. She had him arrested a couple of times,' Laurin Benson said

Friend: Neighbor Laurin Benson said: 'They seemed incompatible but I guess she didn't want to lose the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow.'

Friend: Neighbor Laurin Benson said: 'They seemed incompatible but I guess she didn't want to lose the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow.'

She told Marla via text message that two children - one dressed in a clown suit - had been sitting in her yard 'watching her' and were 'scared' because they had seen her 'doing blow' through the bedroom window, according to the documents.

The conservatorship, however, was removed from Newton in December last year following a settlement between the parties which was finalized in recent weeks. Details of the settlement have been redacted from the court filing.

On Monday a neighbor of the couple told Daily Mail Online that Randy and Lana had stopped sleeping together and had separate bedrooms.

Laurin Benson, a friend of Randy's for 20 years, said the musician had been earning a million dollars a year from Eagles royalties but that had recently dropped to $500,000.

He also said Randy had recently been in rehab and was sober enough to begin driving his sports car, a black Chrysler Crossfire, which he last saw him in a week ago.

Laurin, who lives two doors up, said of the couple: 'They seemed incompatible but I guess she didn't want to lose the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow.

'They called the police a lot. Fire trucks and paramedics were also up here a lot.

'She had him arrested a couple of times.'

Another neighbor said the couple's home is 'covered' in CCTV cameras inside and out, and it's possible Lana's death was caught on camera.

The neighbor, a retiree who asked not to be named, claimed it was Lana who was scared of Randy, not the other way round.

'Lana was scared to death of Randy,' the neighbor said.

'She said in the past she was terrified he would kill her one day. Randy seemed like a docile guy but I think the drinking changed that.'

On Sunday Randy called police officers to report that his wife had accidentally shot herself while looking for something in a closet, where the couple kept two guns.

Police are treating the death as an accident.

Eagles' Randy Meisner's wife Lana 'controlled him and spent money on plastic surgery'

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