In the quiet town of Baldwinsville, New York, a dispute between neighbors escalated into a tragedy that claimed the life of William 'Bill' R. Delany. The 44-year-old man was fatally shot on February 22, 2021, in an altercation that also left his adult son wounded. The incident unfolded on Cold Springs Road, where Delany and his son resided in a first-floor apartment.
That day, a heated argument erupted between Delany and his son and their upstairs neighbors. The confrontation turned violent, and in the ensuing chaos, both William Delany and his son were struck by gunfire. Emergency services were called to the scene, and Delany was rushed to a local hospital, where he was pronounced dead. His son was also transported to the hospital and was listed in critical condition following the shooting.
The investigation into the shooting led police to identify their upstairs neighbor, 44-year-old William Kratz, as a suspect in the incident. Following the shooting, Kratz was taken into custody. While the investigation into the homicide continued, authorities charged Kratz with criminal possession of a weapon. The specific charge stemmed from the discovery that Kratz was in possession of an illegal, untraceable 'ghost' gun.
Subsequent court proceedings focused on the weapons charge. In October 2022, William Kratz was convicted of criminal possession of a weapon in the second degree in Onondaga County Court. He was later sentenced in relation to this conviction. However, publicly available information does not indicate that Kratz faced any charges directly related to the death of William Delany. The official narrative of the events of that fatal day leaves the question of why homicide charges were not pursued unanswered.
