Steven Shelton

Case identifiers and demographics

• Name: Steven Shelton
• Date of birth: 07/11/1965
• Race: White
• Gender: Male

The offence

Steven Shelton was convicted of Murder 1st for the killing of Wilson “Willie” Mannon, a 64-year-old man.

Background

The killing of Wilson Mannon occurred after a night of drinking. The events involved Steven Shelton, his brother Nelson Shelton, and his cousin Jack Outten.

Timeline

• 01/11/1992 — Steven Shelton, Nelson Shelton, Jack Outten, and Nelson Shelton’s girlfriend, Christina Gibbons, spent the afternoon drinking beer at Nelson Shelton and Gibbons’s home in Newark.
• 01/12/1992 — Mannon’s body was discovered along a road in a deserted area of East Wilmington at approximately 11:00 a.m. The officers later stopped Nelson Shelton and Gibbons that morning.
• 01/13/1992 — Christina Gibbons spoke about Mannon’s murder to her social worker, Sandra Nyce.

Investigation

Discovery and scene details

Mannon’s body was discovered along a road in a deserted area of East Wilmington at approximately 11:00 a.m. on January 12, 1992. He was found lying on his back with his legs crossed and the top of his head shattered. Mannon’s pockets were turned inside-out, and loose change, his empty wallet, and his identification cards were scattered nearby. A broken ballpeen hammer handle rested a few feet away from his body, and the head of that hammer was located behind a nearby fence along the road.

Arrest and police contact

Nelson Shelton and Gibbons were stopped by New Castle County police later that morning. The officers sought to question Nelson on an unrelated charge. He was taken to police headquarters and found to be in possession of two gold rings that belonged to Mannon. Nelson’s winter jacket also appeared to be stained with blood. Gibbons accompanied Nelson to the police station.

Statements

While at the police station, Christina Gibbons provided statements to New Castle County and Wilmington law enforcement officers implicating Outten and Steven Shelton in the robbery and murder of Mannon.

Gibbons recounted that she had been at a bar the previous night with Outten and the Shelton brothers, and that, at the end of the night, the four of them left in Nelson’s car with an “older man” named Willie. From the bar, they drove to a “boat yard,” where the older man was beaten with a hammer and an object she thought was a sink. According to Gibbons, Outten struck the man with the sink and Steven kicked him. She stated that Nelson, though present, was not involved. Gibbons told police that the sink was discarded along Interstate 95 after the murder.

The next day, January 13, 1992, Gibbons spoke about Mannon’s murder to her social worker, Sandra Nyce. The story she recounted to Nyce differed significantly from her prior statements to police. She implicated Outten and both Shelton brothers in the beating and murder, stating that all three men had taken turns hitting Mannon and that they had killed a “nice old man.”

Trial and sentencing

Steven Shelton was sentenced to death on April 30, 1993.

Other related case outcomes mentioned

• Nelson Shelton was executed on March 17, 1995.
• Jack Outten was also sentenced to death.