By Shereen Siewert
A Wausau-area man will spend eight years in prison for shooting his friend in the head and leaving without calling for help or trying to save him.
David Anselmo, now 22, was on extended supervision for a crime committed in Florida when he shot Troy Wilcox after a night of heavy drinking. The shooting happened on June 17, 2019 at a home in the 300 block of North Second Avenue.
Anselmo, who was charged in 2019 with first-degree reckless homicide by use of a dangerous weapon and operating a firearm while intoxicated in connection with Wilcox‘s death, was convicted Feb. 1 after pleading guilty to an amended charge of homicide by intoxicated use of a weapon.
In an initial interview, Anselmo allegedly confirmed he and Wilcox had been together drinking at the home but told police Wilcox was alive when Anselmo left. A video posted to Facebook and shared with Wausau Pilot and Review appears to show Wilcox and Anselmo drinking and playing beer pong together at about 4 a.m. with no one else in the room.
Police were not called to the scene until after 3 p.m. that day, when the discovered 19-year-old Wilcox lying on his bed with a gunshot wound above his left eyebrow.
In a later statement to police, Anselmo said he and Wilcox were drinking and playing cards while passing Wilcox’s gun back and forth, according to the complaint. Wilcox passed the gun to Anselmo, who removed the magazine from the firearm before handing it back and leaving for the bathroom.
After returning from the bathroom, police say Anselmo picked up the gun from the bed, checked to see if a round was in the chamber, pulled the slide back and accidentally pulled the trigger, according to statements he allegedly made to police. After realizing the bullet had struck his friend in the head, Anselmo fled without performing any lifesaving measures and without seeking assistance, the complaint states.
During Friday’s sentencing hearing, Circuit Judge Greg Huber also ordered Anselmo to spend 10 years on extended supervision following his eventual release from prison. He is to have no contact with the victim’s family and must maintain absolute sobriety during his sentence.
Restitution has not yet been determined.
Anselmo, who has been jailed since his 2019 arrest, was granted 1,026 days credit for time served.
