Most people thought Ron and Shirley Nelson had the perfect marriage, but a barrage of gunshots ended it after more than 30 years.
Shirley’s first marriage was thrown out because she couldn’t have children. She married a second time and had two stepchildren. She was close to them all her life.
After her second marriage ended in divorce, she met 24-year-old CPA Ronald Allen Nelson, and they soon fell in love again.
Not long after he got married, Ron went to work for Charles M. Schulz, the cartoonist behind the “Peanuts” comic strip. The couple moved to Santa Rosa in northern California to be closer to Schulz.
How did Shirley Nelson die? How did she pass away? Suicide Attempt Explained
The Press Democrat said that Shirley Nelson, who was 78 years old when she died in 2008, had colon cancer.
Some online stories say that she killed herself in the meantime. She shot herself in 1995 after shooting her husband first, but she lived.
Then, she was taken to the hospital to heal and get a mental health checkup
Her online obituary is missing, and today’s brand-new episode of “Snapped” will tell us more about her.
Ron Nelson’s wife, Shirley Nelson, killed him because he was cheating on her with a young secretary.
Shirley Nelson and Ron Nelson celebrated their 28th wedding anniversary in May 1995. But less than two months after that, something strange happened.
Sources say that Shirley shot her husband Rob when she found out that he was having an affair with his secretary.
Shirley found out about the relationship a month before the event. The news that Ron was having an affair with a younger woman hurt her pride.
On July 5, 1995, someone called 911 to report that someone had fired a gun at 1 Snoopy Place. When the police got there, they saw 53-year-old Ron Nelson lying on the ground face down.
Ron had been hit in the back twice. The San Francisco Chronicle said that Shirley Nelson, 65, was found inside the building with a gunshot wound to the chest that she had given herself.
Ron’s coworkers told the police that Shirley drove up in a brand-new car and was dressed in black the morning of the shooting.
By Charles Schulz: Shirley Nelson’s Time in Prison and Bail
The San Francisco Chronicle says Shirley was taken into custody and charged with trying to kill someone.
Shirley’s bail was set at $2 million, which was a record at the time. Charles Schulz agreed to pay the money to get her out of jail, which surprised a lot of people.
Before he died, the famous cartoonist Charles Schulz, who made the “Peanuts” comic strip, was worth $119 million.
During her trial for attempted murder in April 1996, Shirley said she was not guilty because she was crazy. The San Francisco Chronicle says that the jury’s 9-3 vote in favor of acquittal led to a mistrial.
In 1997, she got one year in jail, five years of probation, and 3,000 hours of community service, according to the Press Democrat newspaper in Santa Rosa.