MORGAN COUNTY, Ala. (WHNT) — A man was found guilty of capital murder by a Morgan County Jury on Thursday for a 2020 murder-for-hire in Hartselle.
The jury deliberated 20 minutes before finding Delp guilty of capital murder forpecuniary gain and capital murder for shooting into a dwelling. Delp was sentenced today to life imprisonment in the Alabama Department of Corrections without the possibility of parole.
The Morgan County DA said that on July 24, 2020, Hartselle police officers responded to a home on Dawson Street for a welfare check because Anthony Larry Sheppard did not appear in court for a scheduled custody hearing, and his attorney requested that officers check on him.
Upon arrival, HPD officers found that Sheppard’s storm door was shattered and his main door was open. Sheppard was found dead with multiple gunshot wounds.
“During the course of the investigation, led by Investigator Tania Burgess with the Hartselle Police Department, it was determined that Delp was hired to kill Sheppard to prevent him from regaining custody of his child,” the Morgan County DA’s office said.
Four other people, LaJuhn Keith Smart, Aaron Howard, Jaclyn Skuce and Angela Stolz, were charged in Sheppard’s death. Sheppard and Skuce share a child, and investigators said Skuce contracted Delp to kill Anthony Larry Sheppard, and the others involved all played a role.
“We’re happy for the family of Larry Sheppard that the jury returned a guilty verdict of capital murder. This is a small step towards closure for the family, and we will continue to pursue justice for them as best we can,” Chief Assistant District Attorney Garrick Vickery said.
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