[chris]

William C. "Bill" Zelenski shot and killed his girlfriend's 18-year-old son, Ryelee Manente-Powell, during a confrontation over a suspected theft in Waupaca, Wisconsin, on October 19, 2020, then called 911 and claimed self-defense.

Zelenski, about 44 to 47 during the proceedings, was a former sheriff's deputy and exotic animal dealer who operated "Wild Bill's Exotics" in the Waupaca area. He was married to Portage County Clerk of Courts April Zelenski while dating co-defendant Tiffany R. Powell, about 34 to 37, a previously convicted felon. Powell was Ryelee's mother. Ryelee, also referred to as Ryelee Manente or Manete-Powell, was the father of a young child.

The dispute followed a burglary at Zelenski's home in the Town of Dayton the previous week. Two handguns, alcohol and exotic reptiles worth roughly $27,000 were reported stolen, including a Mexican beaded lizard worth about $17,000, a baby Burmese python worth about $7,000, a Nile crocodile worth about $2,000, a red-tail boa worth about $575, and possibly venomous snakes. Zelenski believed Ryelee and Ryelee's friend Ashton Tody, then 17, were responsible. No long-standing personal feud beyond the theft was established. Earlier on October 19, Powell argued with her son and told him he was "dead to me."

After making multiple 911 calls that day to report the burglary and name suspects, Zelenski and Powell drove around that evening looking for the stolen items and animals, the suspects, or both. At about 10:25 p.m., they saw Ryelee walking near Van Street and Shearer Street, pulled over and confronted him at the public street intersection.

According to the criminal complaint, 911 calls and doorbell-camera video, Ryelee removed his shirt and challenged Zelenski to fight. Zelenski retrieved a double-barreled 12-gauge shotgun loaded with slugs, handed it to Powell and directed her to point it at her son. She complied, then returned the gun. Ryelee told Zelenski to put it down and fight like a man. As the two circled in fighting stances, Zelenski shot Ryelee once in the chest.

Neither Zelenski nor Powell rendered aid, despite a nearby witness screaming for them to help. Ryelee was pronounced dead on arrival at the hospital. Zelenski and Powell had gone looking while armed and equipped, and their vehicle contained the shotgun, another long gun, 112 rounds of ammunition, knives, handcuffs, a hammer, baseball bat and pickaxe. There was no extensive post-act cover-up beyond the initial self-defense claim.

Zelenski was arrested at the scene, and Powell was arrested shortly afterward. Investigators obtained the doorbell video, multiple 911 recordings, witness accounts and statements from both defendants. An autopsy found a single shotgun wound to the chest, which the medical examiner described as a contact or near-contact wound inconsistent with a struggle. Video and witness accounts showed Ryelee was unarmed, that Zelenski and Powell initiated the confrontation by stopping him, and that Zelenski armed himself and involved Powell before any physical fight. Powell's initial account aligned somewhat with Zelenski's, but the video contradicted aspects of it, including the gun-handing. Both later testified at Zelenski's trial. Tody was separately convicted of party-to-theft and received probation.

The video is about 68 minutes of police interview-room footage. It presents the interview itself without narration or a presenter.