Shivangi Sinha
In May 2018, responding officers in Mount Sterling, Kentucky, answered calls reporting a shooting. They rushed to the scene and found David Scott dead from a gunshot wound, while his wife, Shawna Scott, was severely injured. The investigation that followed was relatively straightforward, but the motive behind the crime proved far more difficult to understand. Netflix’s ‘Worst Neighbor Ever,’ particularly the episode ‘She Finally Snapped,’ examines the case in detail through the accounts of witnesses to the crime and those who were deeply affected by it.
David Scott Was Standing Outside His Residence When He Was Shot to Death
David Nathaniel Scott was born on September 24, 1970, to David N. and Beverly Scott. He grew up in a religious family in Ohio. He and his brother, Adam, often got into all kinds of mischief and were raised in an ordinary household like many others. By 1995, David was working at the Warren County Board of Developmental Disabilities, which is where he first met Shawna. At the time, she had a two-year-old daughter named Hailey from a previous relationship, and David quickly accepted the little girl as if she were his own daughter. He became a father figure in her life, and not long afterward, the young couple decided they wanted to marry.
Soon afterward, David and Shawna were blessed with their second daughter, Hunter Scott. They had settled in Ohio, but since many of Shawna’s close and extended family members lived in Mount Sterling, Kentucky, they decided to move there and raise their family. David eventually started working at Summit Polymer, a factory that made car parts. He also took a part-time job as a Deputy Jailer at Montgomery County Regional Jail. They were a quiet family simply living their lives. On May 26, 2018, David was standing outside his house when he was shot in the chest. His wife, Shawna, was also shot in the face, but she survived. By the time emergency responders arrived, David had been pronounced dead.
David Scott’s Killer Had Lived With Him Before They Committed the Crime
As soon as investigators received a call about a shooting at David Scott’s house, they suspected they knew who the perpetrator was. It all began in 2016 when Shawna’s much older family friend, Frances Ann Zaayer, moved in with them. According to Shawna, Frances quickly made herself comfortable in the house and was not the easiest guest to live with. She also stated that their houseguest was allegedly racist, which made David uncomfortable since he was a person of color. In January 2017, when Frances allegedly made a remark about David’s grandson, Owen, the family decided to ask her to move out and believed that would be the end of the matter. In March 2017, Frances moved into a house directly across the street and next to Shawna’s parents’ home.
The tension between the families continued to escalate, and daily arguments became common. In April 2017, a physical altercation broke out between Shawna and Frances, and the police were called. Frances decided to press charges, and on May 11, 2017, Shawna was arrested on charges of fourth-degree assault. She was later released, but a no-contact order was issued against her, prohibiting her from coming within 500 feet of Frances. In the months that followed, several calls were made to local police by both sides. Shawna reported that her neighbor was lounging naked in the yard while her children were outside playing, and she also claimed that Frances allegedly harassed her and her family in a number of different ways.
In May 2018, Shawna had pleaded guilty to the assault charges. She was sentenced to one year of probation and was ordered to attend anger management classes. Frances made numerous calls to the authorities and accused them of not taking appropriate action because David was a jailer. To protect themselves, David decided to install CCTV cameras outside his house, and that is what he was doing on May 26, 2018. The footage showed Frances walking into the driveway and pulling out a gun moments before shots were heard. Investigators also alleged that she had shot another person in order to gain entry into the house. She was arrested on charges of murder, two counts of attempted murder, and first-degree burglary.
Frances Zaayer is Serving Her Sentence in a Kentucky Prison Today
Frances Zaayer decided to plead guilty to the charges of murder, second-degree assault, and first-degree wanton endangerment. She did not plead guilty to the attempted murder charge stemming from the allegation that she had shot another person before entering David Scott’s house. She was ultimately sentenced to 35 years in prison. Frances is currently being held at the Kentucky Correctional Institution for Women in Pewee Valley, Kentucky. She will be eligible for parole in May 2038.
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