No mercy for Kanawha County killer

CHARLESTON, W.Va. — A Kanawha County woman was sentenced to spend the rest of her life in prison for her role in the 2014 stabbing death of Nancy Lynch in St. Albans.

Jessica Wilson, 29, sat sullen during Thursday’s sentencing hearing.

Over Jessica Wilson’s plea for mercy, Kanawha County Circuit Judge Duke Bloom gave the 29-year-old a life sentence with no chance for parole Thursday.

Lynch, 66, was stabbed to death in her St. Albans home during a robbery Jan. 4, 2014. Wilson admitted she knew Timothy Shafer, 29, planned to rob Lynch when they went to her home and waited for her to return. But Wilson contended she didn’t expect Shafer to turn violent.

“I didn’t know he was going to kill her and I’m sorry for the family,” Wilson told the court. “If I could change it today, I would. I wouldn’t do it again.”

Wilson pleaded guilty to first-degree murder earlier this year.

“ADHD is not an excuse for homicide. Bipolar (disorder) is not an excuse for homicide,” Bloom told Wilson after hearing her troubled history. “These conditions, perhaps, are all aggravated by your volitional use of drugs and alcohol. You weren’t a proper parent to your children because of your illegal use of drugs,”

That history included tales of drug addiction, the removal of her two kids from her custody when she was 18, an abusive marriage and the overdose death of a boyfriend.

On the issue of possible parole, Bloom concluded: “I don’t find that your conduct in this matter in any way near makes you eligible for life with mercy.”

At the time of the stabbing, Lynch’s jewelry was taken, along with a car and other items.

Family members shared Nancy Lynch’s high school yearbook photo.

Shafer and a third defendant, Megan Marie Hughes, returned to Lynch’s home several times after her killing to steal other items.

More than 20 days passed before Lynch’s body was discovered. Her basset hound, Hazel, was also abandoned upstairs in the home without food or water.

Shafer, who claimed Wilson was the killer, has been sentenced to life in prison with no chance for parole for Lynch’s murder. Hughes is serving a sentence of up to 15 years for pawning items from Lynch’s home.

In court, Wilson denied returning to Lynch’s home.

“I didn’t step over her body like they did,” she said, before addressing Lynch’s family and friends. “I’m sorry for putting their family through it and my family through it and I pray for both families every night.”

Judy Clary, Lynch’s cousin, called Wilson a “monster” and a “murderer.”

“No apology will ever be accepted by our family,” Clary said. “You murdered an innocent, 100-pound, 66-year-old woman for pills.”





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