PINELLAS COUNTY, Fla. (Court TV) — The oldest son of a couple who were bludgeoned to death in their Florida home struggled for composure as he gave victim impact evidence about the loss of his parents.
Richard Ivancic Jr. took the stand Tuesday to testify about his father and stepmother, who were murdered in their Tarpon Springs home in December 2018 by their son-in-law, Shelby Nealy.
Richard Ivancic Jr. testifies in the penalty phase trial of Shelby Nealy on July 16, 2025. (Court TV)
Nealy pleaded guilty to the murders of Richard Ivancic, Laura Ivancic and their adopted son, Nicholas Ivancic. Richard and Laura were the parents of Nealy’s wife, Jamie Ivancic. Nicholas was Jamie’s brother.
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Prosecutors say Nealy killed Jamie in January 2018 and tricked her family into thinking she was alive by using her phone to send texts and photos of their children. When her parents demanded to see her, Nealy and his children traveled to Florida in December 2018 under the pretext of a family vacation and killed his in-laws.
A jury will now decide if Nealy should spend the rest of his life in prison without parole or be sentenced to death. Their decision is a recommendation for the judge, who ultimately decides punishment.
Ivancic Jr., 59, identified himself as the oldest of four children from his father’s first marriage. He said he spoke to his father at least once a week and regularly shared family photos with him.
He said he last spoke to his father on his 71st birthday, three days before he was killed, according to prosecutors. When his father stopped responding to text messages and phone calls after that day, Ivancic Jr. said he became concerned. He contacted other family members who also hadn’t heard from him, leading the younger Ivancic to request a police welfare check on January 1, 2019.
Law enforcement witnesses said they found the house in disarray as if it had been “ransacked.” Discarded food packaging, children’s toys and cleaning supplies were strewn across the floor and countertops. Blood droplets were spattered across the walls and furniture. Splotches of white spray paint were also found on walls, evidence of Nealy’s attempts to cover up his crimes, prosecutors said.
Ivancic Jr. described his father as “very organized,” noting it would be “very unusual” to find trash on the floor or paint on the walls in his father’s home.
The prosecution presents opening statements in the penalty phase for Shelby Nealy, who pleaded guilty to killing his wife and her family. A jury will decide if he should be sentenced to death or spend life in prison for the murders. (Court TV)
In emotional victim impact evidence, Ivancic Jr. described his father’s journey from Ohio, where he married his high school sweetheart and had four children, to Florida, where he intended to retire with his second wife, Laura.
Richard and Laura met in Ohio and married when Ivancic Jr. was in high school. The couple fostered several children before adopting Nicholas and Jamie, giving “them everything they could possibly want,” the younger Ivancic said.
“My dad and Laura loved foster kids and were torn every time they had to give them up. They loved kids and grandkids, had many years ahead of them,” Ivancic Jr. said.
Pointing at Nealy in the courtroom, he concluded his statement by saying, “They were all taken away by him.”
This story, reported by Court TV’s Emanuella Grinberg, has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
