Cleveland man convicted of murdering woman walking her dog

CLEVELAND – It’s been five years since Sheila Wallace was shot and killed while walking her dog in McGowan Park.

Sheila’s daughter, Katie, described her as kind, patient, faithful to God and the “moral compass” of her family.

The man who killed Sheila, DaJuan Evans, was sentenced Wednesday to 15 years in prison.

Evans pleaded guilty to the following charges:

• One count of involuntary manslaughter with a three-year firearm specification
• One count of assault with a firearm specification of one year

“I feel like I got more closure when I heard him say he was guilty. That was the closure I needed more than the amount of time they could have given him,” Katie said.
Katie said she and her family had half an hour to decide whether to move forward with Evans’ plea deal.

“We hoped he would get a life sentence. They explained to us that they had proof, but it was a difficult case. They couldn’t promise it anyway. They said they had cases with so much evidence that was clear. “Yes, guilty.” They had the same amount of evidence and jurors couldn’t see the full picture and didn’t convict. We’re not really gambling people in my family. We thought it was a sure thing, a certain 15 (years) with no chance of parole. That’s enough that it’s his adult life. His adult life will be over. He won’t come out until he’s almost forty,” Katie added.

Katie said that while she and her family will probably never forgive Evans for taking her mother’s life, Sheila would have forgiven him and shown mercy.

RELATED: Family pleads for answers a year after 58-year-old Sheila Wallace was killed in McGowan Park

She even believes her mother showed her a sign that she accepted Wednesday’s sentencing.

“When we came out of the criminal case, a man wearing a sweatshirt crossed the street in front of us and said, ‘Too blessed to be stressed.’ That was something my mom had on a T-shirt and something she always said. We were all like, ‘Oh my God. Look at his shirt. Oh my God.’ It felt like a sign from my mother that my mother was okay with the outcome of everything,” Katie explained.

There are a few musicians who play on the radio, like Bob Dylan, John Mellencamp and Willie Nelson, who remind her of her mother.

“My mother worked at the Cleveland Clinic and got cards from someone she knew. They hooked her up with tickets and they were actually backstage passes. We got to see Willie Nelson and Bob Dylan and stuff backstage, which was just a really fun experience,” Katie recalled. “I just hope she’s proud of us for the way we handled things. I hope she is proud of us and that she is at peace where she is, that this can give her peace.”

Katie told me that she now feels like she is in a state of healing, “thriving instead of surviving,” as she liked to put it.

The shooting

Shelia Wallace walked her dog, Winston, in McGowan Park on January 17, 2019, around 7 p.m. As she walked through the park, Evans and another man walked up to her.

According to video evidence, Evans and the other man crossed paths with Sheila. The video shows Evans stopped, turned and fired four shots at Sheila. One bullet hit her in the head, while another hit her in the chest. The two additional shots missed her.

RELATED: Cleveland Clinic employee fatally shot while walking her dog in a Cleveland park

“Even if it was an accident or whatever, I just want to know what drives someone to fire so many shots at someone you don’t know for no reason. Like what triggered you, dude? Katie said.

Records show Evans and the other man ran away. Shortly afterwards, residents near McGowan Park discovered Sheila and called police.

Cleveland police responded to the scene and she was pronounced dead.

At the time of the murder, the weapon used to kill Sheila had not yet been located.

On April 3, 2019, an unrelated shooting occurred near West 48^e Street and Storer Avenue in Cleveland. That weapon was later linked to Shelia’s murder through the National Integrated Ballistic Information Network.

The Cuyahoga County Prosecutor’s Office announced in May 2023 that Evans had been charged in the fatal shooting.

Bond set at $1 million for man accused of killing Sheila Wallace

RELATED: Bond set at $1 million for man accused of killing Sheila Wallace in McGowan Park in 2019

Evans was 18 years old at the time of the shooting. He is now 24 years old.