William "Billy" Chapman, a 32-year-old man, was just months away from a new beginning. Incarcerated at the Florida State Prison in Raiford, Florida, for burglary, he was scheduled to be released in October 2019 and was eagerly looking forward to rejoining his family. Described as a trusting individual, Chapman was navigating the final stretch of his sentence, unaware that he would become the final victim of a notorious serial killer already behind bars.
On July 5, 2019, Chapman’s hopes
for the future were brutally extinguished in the dayroom of the prison's I-Wing. In a premeditated and savage attack that lasted for approximately 12 minutes, two fellow inmates, Leo Lancing Boatman and William Edward Wells III, cornered him. The assault, captured in harrowing detail by surveillance cameras, showed the two men using makeshift knives, or shanks, and a ligature to stab, beat, and strangle Chapman. During the attack, Boatman and Wells took turns blocking the dayroom's only door, preventing correctional officers from intervening while about ten other inmates looked on. By the time officers could finally enter, it was too late to save Chapman's life.
The investigation into the murder was conducted by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement and the Florida Department of Corrections. The evidence, particularly the graphic video footage, was overwhelming. The motive for the killing appeared to be a combination of the attackers' frustration at being denied a release from a restrictive confinement status and a perceived slight from Chapman. Boatman later claimed they had initially targeted another inmate but changed their focus to Chapman after he allegedly "disrespected" Boatman.
William Chapman’s death brought to light the violent histories of his assailants, both of whom were already serving life sentences for multiple murders. William Wells, known as the "Monster of Mayport," was responsible for the murders of five people in 2003 and had killed another inmate in 2011. Leo Lancing Boatman, dubbed "The Ocala National Forest Serial Killer," was serving two life sentences for the 2006 murders of two college students, Amber Peck and John Parker. He had also been convicted of killing a cellmate in 2010.
In the aftermath of the brutal murder, Chapman's sister, Wanda Cann, expressed her grief and anger, stating that her brother had feared for his life in the prison. She held the correctional facility responsible for failing to protect him from known predators. "That prison is responsible," she said in an interview. "This guy said he was going to kill again, and he killed again."
For the murder of William Chapman, both Leo Lancing Boatman and William Edward Wells III were charged with first-degree murder. A Bradford County jury found Boatman guilty, and he was subsequently sentenced to death in November 2022. Wells also received a death sentence for his role in the murder. Boatman's conviction and death sentence were later affirmed by the Florida Supreme Court. He remains on death row, his execution pending. The case brought a final, tragic chapter to Boatman's history of violence, which spanned more than a decade both inside and outside of prison walls.
