Steffon Boatwright will spend the next 26 years in state prison, with no time shaved off, after admitting to gunning down 35-year-old Demarcus Wilbourn in a North Memphis driveway in September 2023. The sentence was handed down Tuesday, March 10, 2026, after Boatwright pleaded guilty to second-degree murder. Wilbourn was found shot to death on Chelsea Avenue, and his relatives filled the courtroom to back the plea that finally closed a case that has hung over the neighborhood since last year.
Prosecutors say plea resolves the homicide
According to the Shelby County District Attorney’s Office, chief prosecutor Devon Dennis and Assistant District Attorney Jennifer Morris handled the case and secured the plea that formally resolves the September 2023 homicide. The office said Boatwright received a 26-year sentence to be served at 100 percent, and confirmed that members of Wilbourn’s family were in court and voiced support for the agreement. Prosecutors did not release further details about how the negotiations unfolded.
How investigators tied Boatwright to the scene
Investigators built their case by following a literal trail from the crime scene. Officers tracked blood and shell casings from the driveway where Wilbourn was killed to a nearby residence and then pulled surveillance footage that showed flashes they believed were gunfire, as reported by Action News 5. Police later found Boatwright close by and recovered two firearms. That outlet reported he was initially booked on a first-degree murder charge. Wilbourn’s mother said in a televised interview that her son was shot more than 40 times, an interview later reproduced on Yahoo.
Sentence and legal context
The guilty plea brought an end to a case that started with a first-degree murder charge after the September 2023 killing. Prosecutors say Boatwright’s decision to plead to second-degree murder fully resolves the indictment, and the judge signed off on the 26-year sentence to be served at 100 percent. Under Tennessee law, second-degree murder is a Class A felony that typically carries a potential range of 15 to 60 years in prison. The statute is outlined in Tenn. Code § 39-13-210, available through Justia…