DETROIT (WXYZ) — Clayton Willis was well-known in the area of 8 Mile Road and the Southfield Freeway where he would position his wheelchair next to the road, hoping drivers passing by would give him a few dollars or some change.
"He never had any fear out here. This was his world. This was freedom," said a woman who's known Willis for over ten years.
The woman, who declined to be named, said every day she would check on Willis and make sure he had anything he needed including water, food, and hand warmers if it was cold.
Willis lost both his legs to frostbite years ago and a recent stroke left one of his arms virtually useless.
"He loved being out here because he was loved," she said.
But Wednesday afternoon near 8 Mile and the Southfield Freeway, an encounter involving Willis and 28-year-old Joseph (Joey) Selita of Sterling Heights would leave both men dead.
Willis had been shot multiple times. Selita was shot at least once.
It's unclear if the men had ever met before Detroit Police said they got into Wednesday's verbal altercation that resulted in a gunshot being fired. Police said a fight ensued and then several more shots were fired.
"One arm and no legs. Why would you hurt him," said Langston Burke, Clayton Willis' brother.
Relatives of Joseph Selita declined to comment.
Six months ago, Clayton Willis escaped serious injury when a man walked up to him and fired multiple shots at him in what police called an unprovoked attack.
The shooter, in that case, was never arrested or identified, but it followed a string of threats against several other panhandlers in what investigators believed could have been a dispute over territory of panhandling locations considered to be high-cash corners.
Anyone with information on the deadly double shooting is urged to call Detroit Police at 313-596-2260.
