CLAY COUNTY, Fla. – The First District Court of Appeal has affirmed the conviction and sentence for a 34-year-old man accused in the death of a Clay County detective.
Ryan Christopher Wilder, 34, was convicted in 2014 and sentenced to two consecutive life terms for his involvement in the murder of Clay County Detective David White and the death of Ted Tilley.
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Wilder was also sentenced to 30 years in prison, with a three-year minimum mandatory, on a drug trafficking charge. Wilder was convicted on charges of first-degree felony murder, second-degree felony murder and trafficking in methamphetamines.
In February 2012, White was shot and killed during an active meth lab investigation at an Alligator Boulevard home in Middleburg. The home was under surveillance when White and three other Clay County Sheriff’s officers went to the front door of the home.
Moments later, one of the occupants of the home, Ted Tilley, began firing at the detectives, killing White. The other officers returned fire, killing Tilley.
Wilder was making meth during the time of the shooting. Even though Wilder was not the shooter, he was involved in another felonious act during this incident, which under state law, holds him responsible for the murder of White and the death of Tilley.