Lyons found guilty in murder of Menifee basketball coach

By Doug Spoon, Editor

A man accused of a fatal shooting outside a Menifee home was convicted today of first-degree murder.

The conviction of Othelon Lyons, 33, of Bakersfield also carries a special circumstance of lying in wait. A jury found that Lyons shot and killed Menifee resident Claudell Walter as Walter arrived outside his home in June 2019.

Lyons, who will be sentenced April 15 at the Southwest Justice Center in Murrieta, is expected to be given a life sentence without the possibility of parole.

“It’s been torture every day for 2 ½ years,” Walter’s mother, Claudette, told Menifee 24/7 after the verdict was announced. “We’ve been waiting for the verdict, pacing the floor. My husband has been in the courtroom every day during this process.”

After a six-month investigation of Walter’s murder, Lyons was arrested on Dec. 21, 2019 in Bakersfield. Claudette Walter said her son lived in Bakersfield for about five years several years ago. but that she didn't know Lyons.

Walter (left), a popular youth sports coach, had just returned home from coaching a basketball game when he exited his vehicle in front of his home on Light Sails Court about 9:50 p.m. on June 1, 2019, according to a Sheriff's Department news release. Walter, 38, was approached by the suspect, who shot him twice and fled. Walter was pronounced dead at a local hospital.

The Riverside County District Attorney’s office said that Lyons was a drug trafficker who killed Walter because he believed Walter had stolen drugs. Claudette Walter maintains her son was innocent of that accusation and didn’t even know Lyons.

“He admitted buying a tracking device,” Claudette Walter said about Lyons (right), who allegedly stalked Walter for days before killing him. “He said Claudell stole a lot of stuff, but their paths never crossed. He was in Bakersfield and Claudell was living in Menifee. If you don’t see any indication of drug transactions, you can’t make that claim.”

The case went to the jury at noon on Thursday. Jurors deliberated Thursday afternoon, all day Friday, and all day again on Monday before announcing this morning they had reached a verdict.

“Being that there was a lot of evidence, I’m glad they took their time to make the right decision,” Claudette Walter said. “You’re talking about life in prison, and that’s a serious situation.”

Walter's family had lived in Menifee for about 12 years. He was personally responsible for about a dozen youths from the area who competed in the regional basketball league in which he coached.

"It makes no sense," the mother of a player on Walter's team told Menifee 24/7 in 2019. "His coaching had an impact on the kids, not just in sports, but in other aspects of life. He was extremely supportive, and he understood the emotional balance between sports and one's family."