17-Year-Old Gwendolyn Smith Found Dead Inside Her Stepfather’s Bedford Township Home
Law enforcement officers say the suspected shooter, a former bowling coach connected to the 17-year-old’s club team, eventually turned the gun on himself.
Gwendolyn Smith, a recent high school graduate, was found dead inside her stepfather’s home in Bedford Township, leaving a community in shock. As investigators work to piece together what happened, the motive remains unclear.
Authorities say 33-year-old Ryne Leist entered the home on W. Sterns Road on June 14 and shot Smith multiple times before taking his own life. “At this time, the point of entry and access remains under investigation,” Monroe County Sheriff Troy Goodnough said.
The Monroe County Sheriff’s Office also recently confirmed in a press release, “The coroner has ruled the death of Gwendolyn Smith as a homicide. The cause of death for Ryne Leist has been ruled as suicide. The manner of death for both individuals were gunshot wounds.”
Smith, a 2025 graduate of Bedford High School, was part of a club bowling team Leist coached. Although initial reports suggested he wasn’t affiliated with Bedford Public Schools, Goodnough later clarified that Leist did serve as a coach for the club team, though he was not a paid employee of the district.
A photo of Leist with the team appeared in the 2024–2025 school yearbook, confirming his involvement. Leist was previously employed at Forestview Lanes in Temperance, where he was paid for his coaching role.
Authorities believe he resigned from the bowling alley a short time before the shooting, but an exact timeline or reason for his departure remains unclear.
Investigators are also looking into a communication between Leist and Smith that took place five days before the incident.
Goodnough did not disclose the nature of that exchange and said the length of their relationship remains unknown. However, he emphasized, “Gwendolyn did not consider the relation between the two of them to be romantic.”
Goodnough emphasized that the murder-suicide is not connected to a separate incident in Raisin Township involving two teenagers found dead from gunshot wounds.
He praised his team for their work during what he described as a very difficult period and assured the public that there is no ongoing threat.
The sheriff noted that Bedford Local Schools have activated their crisis management team to support students affected by Smith’s death. Community members in need of additional resources are encouraged to contact central dispatch for assistance.
Meanwhile, Smith’s father, Matt Kennerson, offered a heartbreaking glimpse into her life through a collection of personal photos — each one a reminder of the light she carried. In some, she wore face paint and a carefree smile; in others, she laughed beside him, full of life and joy.