A 30-year-old Wilson man is sitting in the Wilson County Detention Center without bond after police say a physical altercation in a Starship Lane front yard turned deadly over the weekend. Charles Zedric Terry now faces one open count of murder in the death of William Chakez Edwards, who was found unresponsive in the yard of a residence in the 3800 block of Starship Lane and pronounced dead at the scene.
According to The Wilson Times, Wilson police officers responded Saturday to reports of an unconscious person in that block of Starship Lane, where Wilson Fire/Rescue Services and Wilson County Emergency Medical Services attempted life-saving measures on Edwards before he was pronounced deceased at the scene. Officers determined that a physical altercation had occurred between Edwards and Terry in the front yard, the paper's report indicates. Terry, who lives at 3740 Starship Lane, Apt. A, was transported to the Wilson Police Department following the incident and was later charged with one open count of murder and booked into the Wilson County Detention Center.
Terry was held under no bond, a status that traces directly to state law. Under North Carolina General Statute § 15A-533, according to Ryan Willis Law PLLC, magistrates are barred from setting bond in murder cases, leaving pretrial release decisions solely to district or superior court judges. That restriction is why Terry's fate on bail now rests with the court rather than a magistrate at booking.
First Appearance Set for Tuesday
Terry is scheduled for a first appearance hearing on Tuesday, September 8, in Wilson County Criminal District Court, where District Court Judge Matthew P. Sperati is set to preside. Sperati was elected in November 2024 to Seat 4 of North Carolina District Court District 8, which covers Edgecombe, Nash, and Wilson counties, per records from the NC State Board of Elections. The hearing falls within the window required by state law: North Carolina General Statute § 15A-601 mandates that defendants held in custody on felony charges appear before a district court judge within 72 hours, or up to 96 hours when court facilities are closed for an extended weekend, according to the UNC School of Government. First appearances are meant to formally inform defendants of the charges against them and to appoint legal counsel.
Because Terry was charged with an open count of murder rather than a specified degree, prosecutors retain flexibility on how the case ultimately proceeds. Under North Carolina General Statute § 14-17, first-degree murder is a Class A felony punishable by death or life imprisonment without parole, while second-degree murder carries Class B1 or B2 felony penalties. Prosecutions in District 8, which spans Wilson, Edgecombe, and Nash counties, are overseen by District Attorney Jeffrey Marsigli, whose office will evaluate the initial police charges before any case moves to a grand jury for formal indictment.
Case Adds to Rising Wilson Homicide Count
The Wilson Police Department says its investigation into Edwards's death remains ongoing. What relationship, if any, existed between Edwards and Terry has not been disclosed, and it remains unclear whether any weapon was involved in the front-yard altercation.
The case lands amid a documented rise in violent deaths across the county. Wilson County recorded 13 homicides in 2024 and another 13 in 2025, compared with eight combined city-county homicides in 2023, a jump documented by Restoration NewsMedia. Regional crime reporting has also noted that sudden interpersonal altercations escalating into fatal trauma make up a substantial share of small-city homicide investigations across eastern North Carolina, according to WFDD.
Wilson officers have handled a string of fatal disturbance calls in recent months. Just last month, Hoodline reported that a 54-year-old Wilson woman was shot dead in a domestic violence incident and died en route to the hospital. The city's police department coordinates emergency responses out of two hubs, its headquarters on Goldsboro Street East and a South District Office on US Highway 301 North, working alongside Wilson Fire/Rescue Services on medical trauma calls, per the City of Wilson.
