Scott Wilson Williams

Overview

Scott Wilson Williams received three consecutive life sentences without parole on July 17, 2008, for shootings and dismemberment of three Charlotte-area women.

Timeline

• July 17, 2008 — Williams was sentenced to three consecutive life sentences without parole.
• July 18, 2008 — Williams entered an Alford plea to first-degree murder and related kidnapping charges and was sentenced to life without parole.
• July 19, 2008 — The plea and sentencing were described in reporting about the case.
• March 9, 2006 — Williams was arrested as a result of the investigation into three murders committed in Union and Chesterfield counties in the Carolinas.
• March 2006 (early) — Detectives confronted Williams at his home in northern Union County; he yielded.
• April 5 — Williams’ first court appearance was scheduled.
• January (year not specified) — The court appointed Jonathan Megerian and Frank Wells as Williams’ counsel; Williams’ previous attorneys withdrew citing a shortage of support staff and a strained relationship with their client.
• December 1993 — Williams sued a Union County hairdresser for $80,000, alleging sexual abuse over a 20-year period beginning when Williams was 8; the lawsuit was settled out of court and details were not released.

Background

Williams was a former state road crew worker from northern Union County and worked for the NC Department of Transportation. He lived in Monroe and was described as having a job and a quiet life. Police said he did not have a previous criminal record.

In December 1993, Williams sued a Union County hairdresser for $80,000, alleging the man sexually abused him over a 20-year period that began when Williams was 8. The lawsuit was settled out of court, and details were not released. The man Williams sued denied the allegations.

Williams was held without bond and was transferred Friday to Central Prison in Raleigh for added security.

The offence

Williams was accused and sentenced in connection with the shootings and dismemberment of three women between 1997 and 2006. The killings were described as part of a nine-year span.

Three women were identified:

• Sharon House Pressley — killed in 1997
• Christina Outz Parker (also described as “Christy” Parker) — killed in 2004
• Sharon Tucker Stone — killed in 2006

Authorities said all three women were shot to death before they were mutilated.

The severity of the mutilations was described as increasing over time. Autopsies and investigators’ statements were said to show that each woman was shot to death before she was mutilated, and that the mutilations were more numerous in later instances.

A Chesterfield County, S.C. coroner position was mentioned in connection with Stone’s autopsy request, and it was stated that he did not respond to a request for a copy of Stone’s autopsy.

Authorities also said Williams’ victims lived a high-risk lifestyle and that Williams was part of it.

Williams was also charged in connection with additional conduct involving two more women:

• In 1995, Williams was accused of kidnapping, rape, and a sexual offense; authorities said he let the woman go.
• In 2000, Williams was accused of kidnapping, rape, and a sexual offense; authorities said he let the woman go. An attack on another woman in 2000 was also described, where the woman escaped.

Investigation

Detectives read statements by Williams and by two more victims who survived. These statements were described as showing that Williams picked up women, tortured and killed them, and as portraying him as a fetishist and predator with insecurity in his sexuality and quickness to anger.

Investigators also described evidence linking Williams to the crimes, including DNA and ballistics from weapons found on his property.

During the period after his arrest, it was stated that Judge Boner sealed documents containing many details of the case. Several media organizations sought to obtain the documents after Williams’ March 2006 arrest.

Investigators seized items from Williams’ home, including assorted whips, chains, handcuffs, knives and handguns, along with handcuffs, hair samples and computer equipment. Detectives also took DNA evidence from Williams by collecting blood, hair and saliva samples.

The Union County Sheriff’s Office released few details about the evidence investigators used to link Williams to the crimes and the conditions of the bodies.

Arrest

Williams was arrested in 2006 at his home on Clontz Long Road. He was described as a 42-year-old NC Department of Transportation worker.

Police said Williams lived in Monroe and did not have a previous criminal record. Williams was held without bond.

Deputies said it was likely three women died at the hands of a serial killer, and they said the killer became more brutal in his attacks over time.

After his arrest, investigators detailed everything they took from his home in the days following his arrest on March 9, 2006.

On March 2006 (early), deputies stated Williams was confronted by detectives at his home in northern Union County, and he yielded. Sgt. Brian Helms testified that Williams was sitting on the couch, shrugged, placed his head in his hands, and said he didn’t mean to hurt those girls.

Trial

Williams entered an Alford plea in Union County Superior Court. The plea was described as meaning he acknowledged that prosecutors had enough evidence to convict him of three counts of first-degree murder in the three women’s deaths.

Union County prosecutors had earlier sought the death penalty. District Attorney John Snyder offered the plea deal “in light of the nature of the case, the sensitivity of the victims and the uncertainty of capital punishment.”

Williams’ attorney, Frank Wells of Asheboro, said the defense “did not have any grounds on which to dispute the statements” read in court.

Williams’ co-counsel, Jonathan Megerian, said discussions about a plea arrangement had been ongoing “a long time,” and it was not until Thursday that Williams gave the final OK. The court appointed Megerian and Wells in January.

Several statements and quotations were presented in connection with what was said during court proceedings.

Statements and quotations

Union County Sheriff’s Lt. David Linto testified that a survivor told investigators Williams removed her shoelaces, wrapped them around her breasts and tightened them until her breasts turned blue, and the woman told detectives:

“He said, ‘I was once your worst nightmare; now I'm your guardian angel. If anyone (messes) with you, I will kill them,'”

Union County Sheriff’s Sgt. Brian Helms testified about Williams’ response when confronted by detectives:

“He was sitting on the couch. He shrugged, placed his head in his hands and said, ‘I didn't mean to hurt those girls,'”

Williams was also described as having told investigators that he planned to cannibalize one woman’s remains, but that he was turned off by the smell of cooked flesh.

Defense counsel stated:

“did not have any grounds on which to dispute the statements”

Frank Wells also said:

“It wasn't a close call,”

Frank Wells added:

“The evidence was overwhelming.”

During the sentencing proceedings, family members of victims had a chance to speak. Heather Brown, daughter of Sharon Stone, wrote a statement read to the court by her brother, Scott Hinson:

“At first I was shocked about him not receiving the death penalty. But I guess God has a plan …”

Heather Brown continued:

“My mom was always around smiling,”

She wrote:

“She called every holiday and for my birthday. She was not a woman of the streets. She worked as hard as she could at restaurants, until she met Scott Williams.”

A survivor described herself and her situation, holding up a photograph taken shortly before her 1995 abduction from the parking lot of a 24-hour supermarket and her subsequent rape. She was described as in her 40s at the time of her statement and said:

“very vivacious and full of life.”

She also said:

“At least I was lucky to survive,”

She added:

“But mentally and emotionally, I constantly look over my shoulder.”

Charges referenced in connection with the Alford plea

Williams was sentenced in connection with three counts of first-degree murder, and his Alford pleas also covered first-degree charges of kidnapping, rape and sexual offense against two more women in 1995 and 2000. He let both women go.

Sentencing

Superior Court Judge Richard Boner handed Williams three consecutive life sentences.

Williams was sentenced to life without parole in the shootings and dismemberment of three Charlotte-area women between 1997 and 2006.

It was stated that the sentences were:

• three consecutive life sentences without parole.

The sentence date was July 17, 2008.

Appeals

No appeal information was included.

Outcome

Williams received three consecutive life sentences without parole on July 17, 2008. He entered an Alford plea acknowledging sufficient evidence for conviction of three counts of first-degree murder in the deaths of Sharon House Pressley, Christina Outz Parker, and Sharon Tucker Stone.

Williams also entered Alford pleas to first-degree charges of kidnapping, rape and sexual offense against two more women in 1995 and 2000, and it was stated that he let both women go.

Aftermath

Following Williams’ March 2006 arrest, it was stated that Judge Boner sealed documents containing many details of the case, and that media organizations sought to obtain those documents.

At the sentencing hearing, it was described as low key, with about a third of seats filled and fewer than two dozen family and friends in attendance. Williams walked in through a side entrance, was shackled at the wrists, and answered Judge Boner’s questions softly.

Williams’ hair was described as grayed since his arrest in March 2006, and he sported the same thick, dark mustache and a pair of wire-frame glasses.

As investigators read evidence against him, the courtroom was quiet. Williams’ gaze tilted toward his shackled hands, and he rocked slightly in his chair during victim statements.

Investigators seized physical items and collected DNA evidence from Williams after his arrest, including whips, chains, handcuffs, knives, handguns, hair samples, computer equipment, and blood, hair and saliva samples.