MOUNT GILEAD — One year to the day after Morrow County Sheriff’s Deputy Daniel “Weston” Sherrer was shot and killed in the line of duty, his family got justice.
Brian Wilson, 53, of Marengo, was sentenced May 26 to life in prison without the possibility of parole, plus 27 to 32½ years, in a hearing in Morrow County Common Pleas Court.
Earlier this month, Wilson pleaded guilty as charged to 14 counts, including aggravated murder, for the May 26, 2025, shooting of Sherrer.
The sentencing was a foregone conclusion after both sides recommended it at the May 6 change-of-plea hearing. Dan and Julie Sherrer, Weston’s parents, wanted to resolve the case without decades of appeals.
Wilson agreed to waive any appeals.
It was standing-room only in the small courtroom, with many law enforcement officers on hand. Sherrer’s loved ones sat in the jury box, at the defense table and behind a row of sheriff’s deputies.
Sherrer was engaged to Alex Lyon. Dan and Kerry Lyon each said they wished Wilson had been sentenced to death when they delivered their victim impact statements.
“I believe he deserves a life in Hell, not in prison,” Dan Lyon said. “He is nothing. His life is worth nothing.”
He said the family has endured “indescribable pain,” made worse by not being able to help Alex through her grief.
Kerry Lyon recalled game nights with her daughter and Sherrer, who always had to win.
“In the beginning of 2025, life was wonderful,” she said, recalling how she and her husband were looking for the perfect wedding venue while Alex and Weston were talking about starting a family.
“On May 26, the defendant ended it all,” Kerry Lyon said. “Weston was a very kind young man who was giving the defendant a chance to make the right choice. Instead, he chose to take him from us.”
She showed grace to Wilson’s father, addressing her last comments to him.
“Please know that my family and I do not hold you responsible in any way,” Kerry Lyon said. “I wish people would realize you had no control over the situation and that they would just leave you alone.”
Defendant’s sister tells what happened the night of shooting
Jamie Boudinot, Wilson’s sister, shed some light on what happened that night. She was the first person to give a victim impact statement.
Boudinot said Wilson had posted some personal family information that upset her and her sister. She said she called her brother, adding he became verbally abusive. Her husband went to Wilson’s house to see what was going on.
He shot at his brother-in-law, reloading and firing again as the brother-in-law tried to flee on the roadway.
“My husband arrived unarmed and was ambushed by gunfire,” Boudinot said. She said his car was struck six times.
Sherrer responded to the 911 call. After threatening the deputy, Wilson fired at him a number of times.
When Alex Lyon addressed the court, Wilson broke down in tears. She said she received a call on the night in question from a friend who said Sherrer had been shot.
“I felt my entire life shatter and come crashing down,” Alex Lyon said.
She said Sherrer was trying to talk Wilson down and reach a peaceful resolution.
“May 26 will always be a reminder that the wrong person died that day,” Alex Lyon said.
Peg O’Grady, an aunt, recalled Sherrer as a beacon of light, noting he was born five days before her mother died.
“He showed us that even in loss, life can break through,” she said.
While Dan and Julie Sherrer did not address the court, they had a statement read by Prosecutor Andrew Wick.
The Sherrers noted that Wilson’s decisions that day “shattered untold lives.” Their son’s last words were, “Brian, don’t.”
“The biggest thing that has been taken away from us is he won’t be there to hold our hand when we die,” they wrote.
Wick became emotional as he read the final lines of their statement.
“We love and miss you. Mom and Dad,” he read.
Wick noted how difficult the case had been for the small, rural community of Morrow County. Many people, including the prosecutor, initially wanted the death penalty for Wilson.
“If the case were about me, I’d gladly go through the depths of Hell to seek the death penalty as I promised,” Wick said.
Deputy’s parents did not want death penalty
Instead, he deferred to Sherrer’s parents. Wick described the fallen deputy as “kind, funny, loving and selfless.”
The prosecutor said even people who don’t normally support law enforcement posted signs in their yards after the shooting.
In fact, he added that some people with warrants risked arrest to attend Sherrer’s memorial.
Kirk McVay of the Ohio Public Defender’s Office spoke at length in mitigation of Wilson. He said everyone wants to know why the shooting happened.
“I can’t give a satisfactory answer, and that makes this difficult,” McVay said.
He said everyone is a sinner and that no one wants to be judged on their worst act on their worst day. McVay said Wilson “drank a lot of alcohol” and doesn’t remember parts of what happened.
“Let me say that that is not an excuse, but it might help explain the why,” the public defender said. “Alcohol and anger don’t mix.”
Wilson was the last to address the court.
“No words can change or fix what happened that day and for that, I’m sorry,” he said.
Wilson told his family he loved them.
“I need you to know that,” he said.
After the hearing, Richelle Ettel, director of victim services for the prosecutor’s office, handed out a statement from Dan and Julie Sherrer.
His loved ones said the community donated more than $72,000 in response to Sherrer’s death. Of the money, $50,000 will go to start a scholarship at Marion Technical College. The scholarship will benefit people pursuing a law enforcement degree, with priority given to students from Morrow County.
The remainder of the donation will go toward the academy’s physical training facility.
“We will never understand the pointless violence that took our son’s life on May 26, 2025, but we hope his legacy continues through this donation and helps those in need,” they wrote. “Weston was a caring and generous man, and we want to see his goodness preserved moving forward.”
Reach Mark Caudill at 419-521-7219 or via X at @MarkCau32059251.
This article originally appeared on Mansfield News Journal: Morrow County sheriff’s deputy murder leads to life in prison
Reporting by Mark Caudill, Mansfield News Journal / Mansfield News Journal
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