David Neal Shepard Sentenced to Life in Prison For Murder of Dr. Joseph Sonnier III

An Amarillo man has been sentenced to life in prison for murdering a Lubbock doctor in July of 2012.

David Neal Shepard has been sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole for the fatal shooting and stabbing of 57-year-old Dr. Joseph Sonnier III.

Prosecutors claim that Thomas Michael Dixon, a plastic surgeon from Amarillo, paid the 52-year-old Shepard three silver bars valued at around $3,000 each to kill Sonnier. Sonnier was dating Dixon’s ex-girlfriend.

Prosecutors decided not to seek the death penalty in return for the plea agreement.

The 49-year-old Dixon is being held in the Lubbock County Jail on $10 million bond. He is charged with capital murder as well.