Felon accused of gunning down Banning man officially charged with murder

A convicted felon accused of fatally shooting a Banning man during a confrontation at the victim's home was charged today with murder and other offenses.

Jason Anthony Rhine, 43, of Riverside was arrested Wednesday following a Banning Police Department investigation into the Jan. 12 attack.

Along with murder, Rhine is charged with burglary, being a felon in possession of a firearm and sentence-enhancing gun and great bodily injury allegations.

He is being held without bail at the Smith Correctional Facility and slated to make his initial court appearance Monday at the Banning Justice Center.

According to Banning police, the shooting happened about 8 a.m. on Jan. 12 in the 1200 block of North San Gorgonio Avenue, near Roosevelt Road.

Agency spokeswoman Sol Avila alleged that the victim, whose identity is pending release by coroner's officials, was gunned down during an unspecified confrontation with the defendant, who immediately fled the single-story house.

Detectives soon identified Rhine as the alleged shooter and determined that he had left the location in a Kia Optima, which was eventually traced to a residence in the 3000 block of Amhurst Drive in Riverside, according to Avila.

She said detectives, with the help of the county's Gang Impact Team, served a search warrant at the property and took Rhine into custody without incident.

According to court records, he has a prior conviction for assault with a deadly weapon.