Joseph Nelson Allegedly Commits Triple Homicide, Including The Killing Of His Own Baby Boy, Then Marries The Sole Witness [Video]


Joseph Nelson, a Kansas City man accused of a triple murder, has recently married the only eyewitness to the murder. Prosecutors believe the marriage is a scam, perpetrated solely in the hopes of keeping the witness from testifying against Nelson in court.

According to witness Shellana Victoria Davis, she and Joseph Nelson went to the home of his ex-girlfriend, Bianca Fletcher, on September 8 of last year. Nelson was apparently angry at his former girlfriend for causing trouble between himself and her new boyfriend, Shannon Rollins. Also present at the Fletcher home was Joseph Fletcher, the one-year-old son of Bianca Fletcher and Joseph Nelson, as well as Shannon Rollins.

Shellana Davis went on to say that Joseph Nelson entered the home first, without knocking or otherwise alerting anyone to his presence, and then called her to join him inside the house, reports the Kansas City Star. Davis said Nelson was brandishing a gun, and demanded that the three inhabitants of the house sit down. Apparently not one to cower, Bianca argued with Nelson and threw something, which was later identified as a diaper box, at him.

Enraged, Joseph Nelson allegedly shot Bianca, then turned the gun on Shannon Rollins and fired, afraid to leave a witness. Even more shocking, Nelson is said to have shot his own baby boy, JoJo, so the neighbors would not hear his cries and come to investigate.

Joseph Nelson and Shellana Victoria Davis were married in early December. Prosecutors speculate that, as the only witness to the triple murder, the marriage will protect Davis from testifying against Nelson.

However, a law professor at the University of Missouri, Frank O. Bowman III, says in the case of the murder of someone under the age of 18, spousal privilege does not apply. Aside from the murder of the one-year-old baby boy, Bianca Fletcher was only 17.

“So, if you’ve got one or more victims under 18, it looks as though you might be able to compel that spouse’s testimony. If you have three homicides to be tried in unison, I’m not exactly sure how you split [them up]. I guess the question arises, in order to get that testimony, what does the prosecution have to do?”

Spousal privilege may also be thrown out if the marriage appears to have been entered into specifically to avoid testimony. In order to use this, though, the matter would have to go to court and have a judge decide if the marriage is in fact a sham.

Shellana told police that Joseph Nelson asked her to pick up shell casings from the murder site, and that she found a total of 14, which she gave to Nelson.


According to CBS News, on the day her wedding to Joseph Nelson took place, Shellana Davis was arrested and charged with one count of first-degree burglary and two counts of tampering with evidence. She is in prison on $75,000 bail; Nelson’s bail is set at $1 million.

KSHB reports that Mark Benson has also been arrested on charges of tampering with evidence related to the triple homicide. Benson allegedly was given two broken cellphones and a set of car keys by Joseph Nelson, and told to get rid of them. According to a probable cause statement, Benson said he and Nelson also dumped shell casings into a dumpster; sold Joseph’s gun, a Smith & Wesson, to a friend; and burned a bag containing the clothes Nelson and Davis wore the night of the murders.

[Image via Shutterstock]

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