A 23-year-old Wisconsin man was found guilty of murdering his parents after they discovered he faked aspects of his life, including a lucrative job offer from SpaceX.
The jury ruled Thursday after two hours of deliberation that Chandler Halderson was guilty on two counts each of first-degree intentional homicide, mutilating a corpse, hiding a corpse, and providing false information on a missing person investigation.
“I hope that it brings some satisfaction,” Dane County District Attorney Ismael Ozanne told reporters after the verdicts. “We know that we cannot bring Bart and Krista back, but this is the first step to hopefully some finality.”
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Prosecutors had argued that Halderson killed both his parents after they discovered his “web of lies.” Halderson falsely told his parents that he was attending a community college, working at American Family Insurance, and had a job offer from SpaceX. When Halderson’s father discovered the lies, the young man fatally shot both his parents and attempted to hide their cut-up and burnt bodies, Deputy District Attorney William Brown said.
Prosecutors shared hundreds of pieces of evidence during the trial confirming their theories, including phone records confirming that Halderson had been where his parents’ bodies were buried, bloodstains on his shoes, and bone fragments found in the family fireplace.
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The defense rested on Thursday without calling any witnesses or seeking testimony from Halderson. The jury then deliberated for two hours before ruling guilty on all counts.
Halderson, who appeared to have no reaction while the verdict was read, now faces up to life in prison due to the first-degree intentional homicide convictions. His sentencing hearing is scheduled for March.
