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The Murder of Za'Zell Preston
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Domestic Homicide
Anaheim, California
December 25, 2011
01
Victim Profile
Za'Zell Preston
Za'Zell Preston
Victim, Age 26
Za'Zell Dominique Preston
Za'Zell Dominique Preston was 26 years old and a mother of three children. She was studying at college with the goal of becoming a domestic violence counselor. Her mother Saidell described her as an amazing and talented young woman. She had survived years of documented abuse at the hands of her husband William Wallace, including a prior incident for which Wallace served jail time, and had at one point attempted to modify a stay-away order to allow the relationship to continue.
Za'Zell had two daughters from a prior relationship, aged 3 and 8, and had recently had a son with Wallace, who was 7 weeks old at the time of her death. All three children were in the apartment the night she was killed and were present the following morning when Wallace staged her body on the couch.
She was killed on Christmas morning, 2011. She was 26 years old. Following her death, all three of her children were placed in the custody of her mother, Saidell Preston. Za'Zell was studying to help other women escape the violence she herself could not escape.
Za'Zell Preston with William Wallace
01
Overview
What We Know
On the evening of December 24, 2011, William Wallace and Za'Zell Preston attended a Christmas Eve party at a neighbor's apartment in Anaheim, California. A neighbor later reported hearing an argument between the couple that night. Prosecutors established that sometime between December 24 and the early hours of December 25, Wallace used blunt force trauma to the head of Za'Zell Preston, rendering her unconscious. She never regained consciousness.
Authorities determined Preston died at approximately 1 a.m. on Christmas Day. After her death, Wallace did not call 911. Instead, he dragged her body from the bedroom to the living room couch, positioned sunglasses on her face, and staged her so that she appeared to be seated. He then had Za'Zell's two daughters, aged 3 and 8, open their Christmas presents in front of their mother's body. He videotaped the children doing so. He told the girls their mother was drunk and had ruined Christmas.
At approximately 9:30 a.m. on December 25, 2011, Wallace called 911 to report that Za'Zell was in need of medical attention. When paramedics arrived, her body was slumped on the couch. She was pronounced dead at a hospital. The couple's 7-week-old son was also in the apartment. At the crime scene, police found blood in multiple areas throughout the apartment, holes punched in walls, and a door that had been knocked off its hinges.
Wallace had previously served jail time for beating Za'Zell. Prosecutors stated at trial that he had been threatening to kill her for three years and that on Christmas he made good on those threats. Za'Zell had at one point in August 2011 moved to modify a stay-away order so she and Wallace could be together again. She was studying at college to become a domestic violence counselor at the time of her death.
02
Chronology
Case Timeline
Prior to December 2011
History of Documented Abuse
William Wallace previously served jail time for beating Za'Zell Preston. A stay-away order had been issued against him. In August 2011, Za'Zell moved to modify the stay-away order to allow the relationship to continue. Prosecutors later stated that Wallace had been threatening to kill her for three years. Za'Zell was enrolled in college classes with the goal of becoming a domestic violence counselor.
December 24, 2011 — Evening
Christmas Eve Party; Argument Reported
William Wallace and Za'Zell Preston attend a Christmas Eve party at a neighbor's apartment. The couple drinks that evening. A neighbor later reports hearing an argument between them that night. Sometime in the early hours of December 25, Wallace beats Za'Zell in the head, rendering her unconscious.
December 25, 2011 — Approximately 1:00 a.m.
Za'Zell Preston Dies
Authorities later determine Za'Zell Preston died at approximately 1 a.m. on Christmas morning. Wallace does not call 911. Instead, he moves her body from the bedroom and stages it on the living room couch, placing sunglasses on her face.
December 25, 2011 — Morning
Children Open Presents in Front of Their Mother's Body
Wallace has Za'Zell's daughters, aged 3 and 8, open their Christmas presents in the living room with their mother's staged body on the couch in front of them. He videotapes the children. He tells them their mother is drunk and has ruined Christmas. The couple's 7-week-old son is also in the apartment.
December 25, 2011 — 9:30 a.m.
Wallace Calls 911
Wallace calls 911 to report that Za'Zell is in need of medical attention. When paramedics arrive, her body is slumped on the couch. She is transported to a hospital and pronounced dead. Police process the apartment and find blood in multiple areas, holes punched in walls, and a door off its hinges. Wallace is taken into custody. He has been held on $1 million bail since that day.
2012
Grand Jury Indictment
A grand jury indicts William Wallace on one felony count of murder. He remains in custody throughout the pre-trial period. The case proceeds through Orange County Superior Court.
April 7, 2021
Convicted of Second-Degree Murder
After nearly a decade of pre-trial proceedings, William Wallace is convicted of second-degree murder by an Orange County jury. Jurors begin deliberating and reach a verdict the following morning. Senior Deputy District Attorney Heather Brown prosecuted the case. Orange County District Attorney Todd Spitzer announces the verdict publicly.
June 4, 2021
Sentenced to 15 Years to Life
William Wallace is sentenced to 15 years to life in prison. Za'Zell's mother Saidell Preston speaks at the sentencing hearing and states: "He beat and tortured my daughter and at the same time mentally assassinated her children. He showed her no mercy. Let's show him no mercy." All three of Za'Zell's children had been placed in the custody of Saidell Preston following their mother's death.
03
Law Enforcement
The Investigation
The investigation into Za'Zell Preston's death began when Anaheim police responded to Wallace's 911 call on the morning of December 25, 2011. When officers arrived, Za'Zell's body was slumped on the living room couch. Crime scene processing revealed blood in multiple locations throughout the apartment, holes punched in the walls, and a door that had been knocked off its hinges, all of which were inconsistent with a single accidental fall.
The medical examiner determined that Za'Zell had sustained multiple blunt force injuries to the head and established her time of death at approximately 1 a.m. on Christmas morning, approximately eight and a half hours before Wallace's 911 call. The extended gap between her death and the call, combined with the evidence that her body had been moved and staged, and that Wallace had filmed the children opening presents in her presence, were central to the prosecution's case.
Investigators also documented a prior history of domestic violence. Wallace had previously served jail time for beating Za'Zell. A stay-away order had been in place, and prosecutors noted that Wallace had been making threats against her life for years prior to the killing. The older daughter witnessed portions of the events of that night and her account was considered during the investigation.
The case took nearly a decade to reach trial. Wallace was indicted by a grand jury in 2012 and remained in custody on $1 million bail throughout the pre-trial period. Senior Deputy District Attorney Heather Brown prosecuted the case in Orange County Superior Court. The trial began in 2021, nearly ten years after Za'Zell's death. The defense argued that Za'Zell's injuries resulted from intoxicated falls during the night and that Wallace did not intend to kill her. The prosecution countered that the pattern of injuries, the crime scene evidence, the staged body, the videotaped children, and the documented history of threats established that the killing was intentional.
Case Document
Case details document covering the investigation and proceedings in the murder of Za'Zell Preston, including background on the prior history of domestic violence and the events of December 25, 2011.
Download Case Details (PDF) ↓
04
Convicted
The Accused
William Wallace
Husband of Za'Zell Preston
Age at Time of Offense: 30
Age at Conviction: 39
Hometown: Anaheim, California
Relationship to Victim: Husband
Prior History: Served jail time for prior domestic violence against Za'Zell Preston
Indicted: 2012 — one felony count of murder
Verdict: Guilty — Second-Degree Murder (April 7, 2021)
Sentence: 15 Years to Life (June 4, 2021)
Prosecutor: Senior Deputy DA Heather Brown, Orange County District Attorney's Office
Defense Attorney: Moorhead (defense counsel at trial)
Case Disposition
William Wallace was convicted of second-degree murder on April 7, 2021, nearly ten years after Za'Zell Preston's death. He was sentenced on June 4, 2021 to 15 years to life in prison by Orange County Superior Court. The second-degree murder conviction means the jury found Wallace killed Za'Zell intentionally with malice but without the premeditation required for a first-degree murder conviction. Orange County District Attorney Todd Spitzer called the killing a heart-wrenching tragedy and acknowledged that the children had been forced to spend Christmas morning in the presence of their dead mother. Wallace had been held on $1 million bail since his arrest on December 25, 2011.
Forensic Breakdown
Case Analysis
Prior Abuse and Escalation
Wallace had previously served jail time for beating Za'Zell, establishing a documented pattern of physical violence within the relationship. Research on intimate partner homicide consistently identifies prior assault, existing protective orders, and explicit death threats as among the strongest predictors of lethal violence. All three were present in this case. Za'Zell had at one point moved to modify the stay-away order to allow reconciliation, a pattern well documented in coercive control dynamics where the victim's safety planning is complicated by emotional attachment, financial dependency, and the presence of shared children. Prosecutors stated Wallace had been threatening to kill her for three years before he did.
Body Staging and Scene Manipulation
After Za'Zell died at approximately 1 a.m., Wallace moved her body from the bedroom to the living room couch, positioned sunglasses on her face, and staged her appearance before calling 911 nearly nine hours later. Body staging in domestic homicide cases is associated with offenders who are attempting to shape the narrative of discovery, delay the investigation, and maintain psychological control over the scene. The placement of sunglasses is a specific detail consistent with an attempt to obscure the visible signs of injury or death. The gap of approximately eight and a half hours between death and the 911 call gave investigators strong evidence of post-death manipulation rather than a sudden discovery of an accidental injury.
Children as Witnesses and Instruments
Wallace not only killed Za'Zell in the presence of her children but subsequently used the children as props in the staging of the scene, having them open Christmas presents in front of their mother's body while he filmed it. He told the girls their mother was drunk. This behavior reflects a complete instrumentalization of the children and an absence of any protective instinct toward them. The psychological harm inflicted on children who are present during intimate partner homicide is severe and well documented; the deliberate staging of their continued participation in a holiday ritual while their mother's body was present represents an extreme amplification of that harm. Za'Zell's mother Saidell described this as Wallace having "mentally assassinated" the children.
The Accidental Death Defense
The defense argued that Za'Zell had been drinking heavily and that her injuries resulted from repeated falls, including into a glass table, and that no single injury could be identified as the definitive cause of death. This defense is a recognized pattern in domestic homicide cases where the perpetrator attributes fatal injuries to the victim's own behavior. The prosecution countered with the crime scene evidence: blood in multiple locations, damage to walls and a door, the documented history of abuse, the staged body, and the nearly nine-hour delay before calling for help. The jury returned a verdict of second-degree murder, rejecting the accidental death account while finding the evidence supported intentional killing with malice rather than premeditated first-degree murder.
Institutional Response and Delay
Wallace was arrested on December 25, 2011 and indicted in 2012, but did not go to trial until 2021, nearly ten years after Za'Zell's death. Extended delays in domestic homicide prosecutions are not unusual, particularly where the defense challenges forensic evidence and the prosecution's burden requires establishing intent rather than the fact of the killing itself. The decade-long gap between Za'Zell's death and the trial verdict reflects systemic factors in case processing as well as the specific forensic and legal complexity of this case. Za'Zell's family waited ten years for the verdict. Wallace had served jail time for violence against her before the murder and was not removed from her life permanently through that prior contact with the criminal justice system.
Za'Zell's Path and What Was Taken
Za'Zell Preston was enrolled in college courses with the explicit goal of becoming a domestic violence counselor. She was studying the system that had failed to protect her, with the intention of helping other women navigate it. Her mother stated at sentencing that Wallace robbed the world of her knowledge, wisdom, and understanding. The intersection of Za'Zell's lived experience of abuse and her professional aspirations to address it represents a specific and significant loss beyond her death as an individual: a survivor who had chosen to turn her experience into advocacy was killed before she could do so. Her children were placed in the custody of her mother following her death.
In Memoriam
They Are Not Forgotten
Za'Zell Dominique Preston was 26 years old and she was someone who had decided to turn her pain into purpose. She was in college. She was studying domestic violence. She wanted to become a counselor. She had lived through years of what she was studying and she was choosing to use it to help other women find a way out. He did not let her finish.
She had three children. Two daughters and a son who was seven weeks old when their mother died. Her children were in the apartment. Her daughters were three and eight years old. They were there for all of it. They were there the night she died and they were there the morning after, when someone sat them in front of a Christmas tree and told them their mother was drunk and handed them their presents. Her children had to grow up carrying that morning.
Her mother Saidell raised her children after she was gone. She stood in a courtroom ten years after her daughter died and said what needed to be said, clearly and without apology. She said he showed her daughter no mercy and asked the court to show him none either. She said Za'Zell was an amazing and talented young woman until he came along and took her forever.
Za'Zell Preston deserved to graduate. She deserved to counsel someone through a door she herself had survived. She deserved to watch her children grow up. She was 26 years old and she is not forgotten.
Sources
Orange County District Attorney's Office — Press Release: "Man Convicted of Second Degree Murder in 2011 Christmas Day Killing of Wife" (April 7, 2021) | Fox 11 Los Angeles — "Anaheim man convicted of beating wife to death on Christmas Day 2011" (April 2021) | Fox News — "California man who propped dead wife up on Christmas as kids opened presents found guilty" (April 2021) | Reuters — "California man convicted of macabre Christmas Day killing of spouse" (April 2021) | Daily Caller — "Man Who Killed Wife, Propped Up Body As Kids Opened Christmas Presents Is Sentenced" (June 2021) | NBC Palm Springs — "Man gets 15 to life for beating wife to death on Christmas Day 2011 in Anaheim" (June 2021) | CBS Los Angeles — "William Wallace of Anaheim convicted for killing wife on Christmas 2011" (April 2021) | MEAWW — "Who was Za'Zell Preston? Mom's body was cold when killer put it on couch, says daughter"
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