Years of strife between prominent Phoenix lawyer James Arthur Eaves and a younger, troubled brother ended in gunfire, according to accounts police took from family members during an initial homicide investigation.
The 51-year-old Eaves, a husband and father affectionately known as “Artie,” died in a March 21 shooting at his home in a wealthy northeast Phoenix enclave. Christopher Brett Eaves, 49, was charged with first-degree murder. The men’s parents told police the surviving brother calmly drove them to the crime scene after they learned of their eldest’s death.
Family accounts given to police illustrate a picture of two men who were professionally accomplished and close before growing apart after the younger brother’s reported mental health decline…