Tyler J. Parton, a 24-year-old White male from Dover, Delaware, was found dead on the morning of December 6, 2016, behind a home in the Pinewood Acres neighborhood. His death brought a sudden and violent end to the life of a young father remembered by his family as goodhearted, funny and deeply devoted to the people closest to him. He had previously worked in construction and enjoyed racing cars, riding motorcycles and spending time with relatives and friends.
Those who knew him described him as inquisitive and outgoing, someone who frequently joked with others and often became the life of a gathering.
The events surrounding the killing began during the early-morning darkness. At approximately 3:06 a.m., a report of gunshots was made to 911 from the area of 462 Aspen Drive. Several hours passed before another emergency call brought authorities back to the neighborhood. At approximately 7:30 a.m., Delaware State Police troopers were dispatched after someone reported an unconscious person lying in the rear yard of a residence in the 400 block of Aspen Drive. Kent County emergency medical personnel responded with police, but Parton was pronounced dead at the scene.
Investigators initially treated the discovery as a suspicious death and began interviewing people and collecting evidence in an effort to reconstruct what had happened during the hours before Parton was found. His body was taken to the Delaware Division of Forensic Science, where an autopsy determined that he had suffered a single gunshot wound. The medical examiner ruled the death a homicide, confirming that Parton had been deliberately killed rather than dying from an accident or natural cause.
The publicly released information has never explained why Parton was behind the Aspen Drive residence, whether he had been visiting someone in the neighborhood or whether the shooting occurred following a confrontation. Police also did not disclose whether physical evidence, shell casings, surveillance recordings or witness accounts were recovered. Although the gunfire report placed the apparent shooting several hours before the discovery of his body, authorities did not publicly identify anyone who may have seen Parton shortly before he was killed.
At the beginning of the investigation, Delaware State Police stated that no suspect information had been developed. No publicly available law-enforcement announcement identifies a person of interest, named suspect or alleged motive in the killing. There is also no public record of anyone being arrested, charged, tried or convicted in connection with Parton's death. His case was later placed among the Delaware State Police cold cases and assigned case number 09-16-074480, indicating that the homicide remained unresolved after the initial investigation.
Parton left behind a young daughter, his mother, his biological father, his girlfriend, several siblings, grandparents and other relatives. His funeral was held on December 17, 2016, followed by burial at Barratts Chapel Cemetery in Frederica. While his loved ones gathered to remember the energetic young man they had known, the circumstances of the shooting remained unanswered. The passage of time has not produced a publicly announced arrest or resolution, leaving investigators dependent on information from anyone who may know who fired the fatal shot, what led Parton to Aspen Drive that night or why he was killed.
