ASHEVILLE - In the retrial of a Candler murder case, a Buncombe County jury found Shannon Daves guilty of first-degree murder in the shooting death of her boyfriend, Roger Michael Evans, just before Christmas 2020, the Buncombe County District Attorney's office announced Aug. 29.
The trial comes after a previous 2023 trial ended in a mistrial , with the jury deadlocked and further deliberations unproductive. District Attorney Todd Williams was able to refile charges against Daves, allowing for the retrial. Superior Court Judge Steve Warren sentenced 50-year-old Daves to serve life in prison without the possibility of parole.
“I thank the jurors for their conscientious deliberations to reach this verdict in this senseless and tragic case and wish the Evans family peace and healing. If you are a victim of domestic violence please contact law enforcement and the Buncombe County Family Justice Center for immediate assistance,” Williams said in a Aug. 29 news release.
The relationship between the couple had been complex, with both the prosecutors and the defense admitting that the pair experienced troubles during their over six-year relationship, the Citizen Times previously reported. During the 2023 trial, both sides had extensively relied on footage from a Furbo dog camera, which had captured the shooting after the couple had returned from a night out drinking, to back-up their claims.
Using audio from the camera, the defense had suggested that Evans had been assaulting Daves and that her actions were in self-defense, but no physical assault had been captured by the camera.
The prosecutors had examined other elements of the audio — including Evans' reaction to Daves pointing a gun at him — and argued that Daves was a controlling girlfriend who manipulated Evans before a Dec. 23, 2020, argument ended in his death. Both had been found with guns, but only Evans had been shot. In the eight-day 2024 retrial, the jury agreed with the prosecution.
“I thank the family of Michael Evans for their patience and support over these past three and a half years and two complete jury trials. I am relieved and gratified that their patience ended with accountability for Daves,” Assistant District Attorney Kyle Sherard said in the news release.
This story will be updated.
Will Hofmann is the Growth and Development Reporter for the Asheville Citizen Times, part of the USA Today Network. Got a tip? Email him at WHofmann@citizentimes.com. Consider supporting this type of journalism with a subscription to the Citizen Tim es.
This article originally appeared on Asheville Citizen Times: Buncombe County woman found guilty of murder in 2020 shooting caught on pet camera
Most Popular
Comments / 0