When Delbert Shafer, a Leetonia father-of-three and law enforcement officer, was found unresponsive in his home, authorities believed he died of natural causes. This was until a detailed autopsy revealed unexplained injuries to his head consistent with blunt force trauma. The first and only suspect in the case was his son David, who was residing with Shafer at the time and was the first to find him unresponsive.
A subsequent investigation revealed David's violent past, his anger-filled fits, and several other pieces of evidence which led authorities to believe that he attacked his father and left him to die while he scrubbed the crime scene and then later lied to authorities. The accused was charged with murder, among other charges, but later pleaded guilty to lesser charges and was sentenced to 14 years in prison.
Delbert Shafer's 2018 horrific death is scheduled to feature in an episode of ID's Evil Lives Here this Sunday, April 30, at 8:00 pm ET. The synopsis for the upcoming episode, I Will Always Be Scared of Him, reads as:
"From the moment Deborah Williamson meets her stepson, David Shafer, she feels something unsettling about him; when her warnings about his frightening behavior go unheeded, the devastation he ultimately wreaks goes beyond her imagination."
Delbert Shafer's murder: Beaten to death by his ex-convict son and other details from the case
1) Shafer was claimed to be found unresponsive at home by his son who was staying with him at the time
Delbert Shafer was found unresponsive by his son David in his Leetonia, Ohio, home on January 14, 2018. The son claimed he called 911 but the victim was already dead by the time medical assistance arrived. Authorities initially believed he died of natural causes, but a subsequent autopsy determined the cause of death to be from blunt force injuries to his head, trunk, and extremities.
Shafer's son, David, who immediately became a suspect in the murder case, was reportedly out on parole in Pennsylvania. The former took him in at the time because he had nowhere to stay otherwise. Reports state that he was previously convicted after being charged with multiple burglary, attempted burglary, receiving stolen property, and theft-related charges.
2) Incriminating evidence and statements from family members led to David's arrest
Upon suspicion, authorities investigating the murder case conducted a search of Delbert Shafer's house where they found that his entire gun collection was missing. Most of them were later retrieved from a hidden room which was concealed with a table, a stack of books, and other objects. They also learned that David had given his 18-year-old half-brother some of those lower-value firearms.
The victim's family later told authorities about David's violent nature, anger-filled fits, and how he had been "manipulative and defiant" even since he was a child. Shafer's ex-wife and the suspect's former step-mother Deborah Williamson also revealed that as per the death certificate, the approximate time between the injuries and the time of death was hours.
3) Delbert Shafer was allegedly attacked by his son, who then let him die instead of calling for aid
At the end of the investigation, authorities concluded that Shafer was attacked by his son David that day, who then scrubbed the crime scene and let him die of fatal injuries instead of calling for medical assistance. He also lied to authorities about calling his nurse friend over to check on his father and only called 911 after his father had died.
David Shafer eventually pleaded guilty to voluntary manslaughter, having weapons under disability, and tampering with evidence in January 2021 and was sentenced to 14 years in prison subsequently.
Learn more about the murder case on ID's Evil Lives Here this Sunday, at 8:00 pm ET.
