What we know about the Ted Shaughnessy murder and plan by his son, daughter-in-law

Five years after the murder of a wealthy Austin jeweler, NBC's "Dateline" and CBS's "48 Hours" are slated to share the story with a national audience.

Ted Shaughnessy was shot and killed in his home by an intruder on March 2, 2018. His wife, Corey Shaughnessy, survived the shooting. The two owned and operated Gallerie Jewelers in Central Austin.

Nicolas Shaughnessy and Jaclyn Edison, the couple's son and daughter-in-law, moved back into the home with Corey Shaughnessy after the murders. But almost three months into the living arrangement, the two 19-year-olds were arrested on charges tied to Ted Shaughnessy's murder.

Here's what to know about the case years later:

Ted and Corey Shaughnessy adopted Nicolas Shaughnessy, who later married Jaclyn Edison in secret

Nicolas Shaugnessy was born in Russia and adopted by Ted and Corey Shaughnessy after they moved to Austin when he was a toddler.

"(He was) just a happy, good-looking, young boy," neighbor Brian Colfack told KVUE. "He always seemed to be a bright young man, he was always very inquisitive about things, he wanted to learn."

Classmates at Austin High School say he developed a fascination with money and finance. In an article in the school newspaper, he detailed a plan to get rich through day trading at home.

Nicolas Shaughnessy graduated with the Class of 2017 and, a month later, married his high school sweetheart, Edison, in secret. The two 18-years-old then moved to College Station.

How Ted Shaughnessy was killed and how Corey Shaughnessy survived

On March 2, 2018, intruders entered Ted and Corey Shaughnessy's southwest Travis County home. Police would later note there were no signs of forced entry to the home (more on that later).

Court documents say two barking dogs alerted Ted Shaughnessy to the situation and he armed himself with a .45-caliber handgun. He stepped out of his bedroom and gunfire erupted. He never fired his weapon. The 55-year-old was later found dead at the scene.

Corey Shaughnessy also woke up and grabbed a .357 revolver and fired back as shots were fired. She then took cover in a closet and called 911.

Nicolas Shaughnessy and Jaclyn Edison lived with Corey Shaughnessy after shooting until they were arrested

Nicolas Shaughnessy was called hours after the shooting and arrived at the home in the morning with Edison. The couple moved in with Corey Shaughnessy, living with her for three months.

The family's store, Gallerie Jewelers, was closed after the shooting but reopened with Nicolas Shaughnessy at the helm.

"We are happy to announce that Nicolas, Ted's son, will be carrying on his legacy here at Gallerie," the April 27, 2018, Facebook post read.

The couple's time living with Corey Shaughnessy came to an end on May 29 when they were arrested on charges of conspiracy to commit murder. The store has since closed.

Motive: Nicolas Shaughnessy owed mother money, hatched plan with Jaclyn Edison to gain $8 million through parents' killing

Law enforcement's investigation revealed that the young newlyweds were in financial trouble. On the morning of the murder, Nicolas Shaughnessy told a detective that he owed his mother $30,000.

“The money was supposedly a loan from Corey to Nicolas to help him start his day trading business,” the warrant says.

Nicolas Shaughnessy told the detective that he had an argument with his mother earlier that week about the money, the document says. Detectives also confirmed that Nicolas Shaughnessy would receive $2 million if his parents died. He'd gain an additional $6 million for inheriting the couple's business and personal property, too.

The warrant says investigators found a chat conversation between Nicolas Shaughnessy and a neighbor on Edison's phone in which the neighbor said she needed back the money she had lent him as soon as possible. The neighbor said she was going to speak with Nicolas Shaughnessy’s parents if she didn’t hear back from him after going out of his way to lend him $2,600.

Another text conversation on Edison's phone revealed a screenshot of her and her husband's bank accounts showing less than $2 in each account.

“Only u know I’m broke,” the message sent to a friend showed.

Johnny Leon III and Arieon Smith hired as hitmen by Nicolas Shaughnessy

A search of Nicolas Shaughnessy and Edison's College Station home revealed conversations tied to hiring a hitman to commit the murder.

Nicolas Shaughnessy asked a woman working at his apartment complex if she wanted to make some extra money doing illegal activities, including “anything from strippers to murders,” the woman told investigators. According to the affidavit, he offered her “$20,000 a head,” plus a $15,000 incentive.

Johnny Leon later told detectives that Nicolas Shaughnessy offered him $100,000 to commit the killings and said he’d gone with Nicolas Shaughnessy to his parents’ Travis County home in late February, when Nicolas Shaughnessy said he would kill his parents himself.

The two were unable to enter the home, returning to College Station and meeting Arieon Smith, who was brought in on the deal. The two entered the Shaughnessys’ home through Nicolas Shaughnessy's bedroom window after he deactivated the alarms remotely via his phone.

Nicolas Shaughnessy and hitmen get prison sentences but Jaclyn Edison gets probation

The three men were sentenced to 35 years in prison in April 2021. After a Travis County grand jury indicted Edison, she pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit capital murder and was sentenced to 10 years' probation two years later.

After her father-in-law's death, she cooperated with investigators and told them that Nicolas Shaughnessy had planned the killing. Edison, who has since divorced from Nicolas Shaughnessy, said that he told her days before the crime that he had found someone in a club who agreed to take the job, according to arrest affidavits.

Detectives found cellphone text messages between the two on Feb. 23 and 24, 2018, in which Nicolas Shaughnessy said he was working hard and "they won't budge," an affidavit for her arrest states. He then wrote, "I'm not their only client, love."

Edison responded, "Do they want $50K or not" and "We can't afford to pay half before," the affidavit says. Nicolas Shaughnessy responded, "We will see." Minutes later, Edison wrote, "I'm sure their casual jobs are around 10." Nicolas Shaughnessy said he was "working on it," and she replied, "OK. Please be careful."

Edison was originally charged with criminal solicitation of capital murder, which carried a punishment of up to life in prison. Her probation sentence was met with a strong reaction from Corey Shaughnessy, who released a taped statement played in court.

“You could have saved Ted with one phone call. That’s all it would have taken, just one," Corey Shaughnessy said. "We opened our home and our hearts to you. And you and Nicolas took everything from us. How long will it take for you to find another family to destroy? How long will it be before Bonnie finds her next Clyde? You are a monster. You are evil and everyone needs to know it."

Nicolas Shaughnessy on why he had his father killed

In an interview from prison with Fox 7's Meredith Aldis in September 2023, Nicolas Shaughnessy expressed regret while accepting responsibility for the killing, saying he and his then-wife had hatched the plan.

"It started off very passively jokingly about what if, you know, this could be ours, and then it became an unfortunate, like, serious conversation," he said.

Nicolas Shaughnessy said he and Edison had not talked about an exact time frame for the shooting. He said returning to Austin to live with his mother and keeping the truth from her led to "many, many sleepless nights."

"I had many conversations, I guess with his ashes," Nicolas Shaughnessy said. "She kept it in the library and that (made) you feel horrible."

He said Edison got the "plea deal of the century" and that his long-term goal is to repair the relationship with his mother.

"It's something that I can never undo and I will live with every day for the rest of my life," he said. "It's not something that I'm proud of."

How to watch 'Dateline' and '48 Hours' episodes on Ted Shaughnessy murder

Both programs will broadcast this weekend, starting with "Dateline." The episode, titled "Ghosts Can't Talk," will air at 8 p.m. Central Time Friday. It will be available to stream on Peacock the following day.

"Shootout at the Shaughnessys'" will broadcast for "48 Hours" on CBS at 9 p.m. Central Time Friday. It can be streamed on Paramount the next day, too.

This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: Ted Shaughnessy murder: Role of Nicolas Shaugnessy, Jaclyn Edison