Deborah Payton, 30, was killed with her companion Shango Wade on September 30, 1994, in Portland, Oregon. The two were sitting in Wade’s minivan at North Killingsworth and Rodney Streets about 1 p.m. when a confrontation with a man identified as Earl Douglas Wilkins escalated. Wilkins drew a handgun and fired multiple shots into the vehicle; the minivan then drifted across the street and struck a power pole. Witnesses said Wilkins walked away from the scene calmly after the shooting.

Police named Wilkins as the suspect; he had prior convictions including sodomy and robbery. He was arrested and charged with aggravated murder. At trial Wilkins claimed self-defense, saying Wade had pulled a gun, but multiple witnesses testified that Payton and Wade were not known to own firearms and had no history of violence. A jury convicted Wilkins of aggravated murder; he was sentenced to life without parole after the death penalty was precluded by one juror’s vote. A roadside memorial was later placed at the shooting site.

If anyone knew Debbie Payton or Shango Wade, or has information about the events that afternoon, please share what is known.