Zona lived with her mother in the Greenbrier County Community of Sam Black Church. In 1896 despite her mother’s objection, Zona married Erasmus Shue, who was basically a drifter that came to the area and found work as a blacksmith. For almost a year the couple seemed to live a peaceful life, but on January 23, 1897 a neighbor found Zona dead in here home.
The coroner examined the body and ruled that she had died of Natural Causes. The next day Zona was buried in a near by church cemetery.
About four weeks after Zona was buried, she appeared to her mother Mary Jane in a dream and claimed that she had been murdered by Erasmus. Zona told her that Erasmus had broken her neck in a fit of rage and to prove it Zona turned her head around until it was facing backward. Mary Jane was so sure of the story that Zona’s Ghost has told her that she contacted the local prosecutor and eventually convinced him to re-examine the case
Mary Jane’s persistence paid off and on February 22, 1897, Zona’s body was exhumed and thoroughly examined. After three day the coroner concluded that Zona’s neck had indeed been broken. The examination also revealed she had been choked and here windpipe Crushed.
As a result, Erasmus was promptly arrested and charged with Zona’s murder. In July 1897 Erasmus went on trial, and the star witness was, Zona who testified through her mother, Mary Jane. As a result, Erasmus was found guilty of the murder of his wife Zona. He was sentenced to life and died three years later in the West Virginia State Prison in Moundville. He is buried in the White Gate Prison Cemetery and remains the only person known to have been convicted on the testimony of a ghost.
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