Winnsboro man sentenced to 15 years in prison for stabbing auto repair worker

WOOD COUNTY, Texas (KLTV) – A jury found a Winnsboro man guilty of murdering an auto repair shop employee in 2020.

Billy Dwaine Cotten, 74, of Winnsboro, was convicted by a Wood County jury Thursday in Judge McCampbell's courtroom of the murder of 54-year-old auto repair worker Steven Lancaster.

According to a statement from the Wood County District Attorney's Office, in May 2020, police responded to an aggravated assault call at a Winnsboro auto repair shop where they found Lancaster lying on the floor with multiple stab wounds. Lancaster was taken to the hospital where he later died.

Police found Cotten sitting in his truck outside the repair shop. When questioned, Cotten said he got into a verbal altercation with Lancaster over a scooter battery, who pushed him to the ground and kicked him. Fearing for his life, Cotten pulled a knife from his pocket and stabbed Lancaster with it.

According to the news release, Lancaster's wife testified that Cotten told her three to four weeks before the incident that Cotten would stab Lancaster if he and Lancaster got into an argument again.

According to Wood County District Attorney Angela Albers, the jury deliberated for less than three hours before finding Cotten guilty of Lancaster's murder. But before sentencing could take place, Cotten's defense approached Albers to discuss a sentencing agreement.

After discussions with the defense and victims, a deal was reached that sentenced Cotten to 15 years in state prison. In addition to his sentence, Cotten waived all appeal rights and must pay a $1,000 fine plus court costs.

The jury also convicted Cotten of using a deadly weapon, in this case a knife, in the murder, meaning he must serve at least seven and a half years of his sentence before being eligible for parole.

According to the release, an autopsy revealed that Lancaster suffered a total of 14 to 15 stab wounds.

The press release also states that security video captured by cameras inside the store shows Lancaster running toward one of the store's exits with his back to Cotten. Cotten is then shown following Lancaster with a knife in his right hand. Cotten admitted to law enforcement that he was angry and intended to stab Lancaster.

In this case, Cotten will receive seven days in prison.

Related:

• Winnsboro man in jail charged with stabbing at auto repair shop
• Affidavit: A Wood County man stabbed an auto repair worker nine times “out of fear for his life.”

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