Houston man killed girlfriend's brother after he protected her from his abuse
HOUSTON - A Houston man who killed his girlfriend's brother during a 2022 altercation has been sentenced to prison by a Harris County jury, announced District Attorney Kim Ogg.
On Thursday, Kempsha L. Wilson, 28, was sentenced to life in prison following a five-day trial for the murder of 32-year-old Spencer Nichols on Feb. 15, 2022.
"Domestic violence doesn’t just affect the person who is being abused, it affects the entire family," Ogg said. "All too often domestic violence escalates to murder, and this case shows that a family member can lose their life just trying to help someone else get out of an abusive relationship."
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The Harris County District Attorney's Office says the day before the shooting on Valentine's Day, Wilson got into a heated argument with his girlfriend over him talking to another woman. Testimony revealed that during the altercation, Wilson strangled and assaulted his girlfriend.
Wilson's girlfriend kicked him out her apartment they lived in together on Kipp Way Drive in southwest Houston, just outside Beltway 8, near the Southwest Freeway.
During the fight, she pulled out a firearm and shot at him to emphasize she wanted him to leave the residence. She also messaged her brother, Nichols, to come help her, court records say.
When Nichols' arrived, Wilson returned to the apartment armed with an AK-47-style assault rifle, according to records, and threatened the woman and Nichols but Nichols convinced Wilson to leave
Nichols took his sister and her two young daughters to his home for the night out of concern for their safety. Harris County DA's Office says around noon the next day, on Feb. 15, 2022, the woman, her daughters, and Nichols returned to the apartment to change clothes, along with Nichols' three children also accompanying them.
Authorities report while they were at the apartment, Wilson arrived with a handgun along with at least two other armed individuals. The woman attempted to pull out her pistol in self-defense, but Wilson took it away from her.
With a pistol in each hand, Wilson confronted Nichols in front of the apartment and pistol-whipping him, officials said. He then placed the barrel of one of the firearms against Nichols' chest and shot him, killing him in front of his three children.
Wilson and the other men left the scene.
Detectives from the Homicide Division of the Houston Police Department investigated the shooting and charged Wilson, who was arrested nine days later.
"The victim, in his role as a protective big brother, paid the ultimate price," Assistant District Attorney Jason Campo said. "The defendant has been granted multiple opportunities for reform but continues to harm others, leading the jury to conclude that a life sentence in prison was warranted."
Campo served as the chief assigned to the DA's Trial Bureau, and Gabriel Kabak prosecuted the case. Campo highlighted Wilson's criminal history, which included three previous prison sentences before this murder.