The Wisconsin Supreme Court will not take up the case of a man convicted of killing and dismembering his parents in 2021 in Dane County.
Chandler Halderson’s life sentence, without the possibility of extended supervision, was most recently upheld by the state Court of Appeals in 2025. Petitioning to bring the case to the Supreme Court, Halderson argued his sentence was too severe, the jury pool was biased against him and the evidence presented during the trial wasn’t sufficient.
Halderson, 23 at the time of the killings, was found guilty at trial of two counts each of first-degree intentional homicide, mutilating a corpse and hiding a corpse. The charges of hiding a corpse were later dismissed.
His parents, Bart and Krista Halderson, ages 50 and 53, lived in the village of Windsor in Dane County. Halderson reported them missing, kicking off a search for his parents. Investigators found remains of both individuals in several locations around the area.
Halderson’s petition argues the evidence presented wasn’t enough to prove he was guilty of homicide beyond a reasonable doubt. He also argued the life sentence without the possibility of parole for a young person “ignores the capacity for change and rehabilitation,” and that brains are still developing impulse control into a person’s mid-20s. He argued that the “media spectacle” of the case violated his right to an impartial jury.
The Supreme Court denied a review of the case June 16, according to online court records.
This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: State Supreme Court won’t take case of man who killed, dismembered parents
Reporting by Sophie Carson, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By Sophie Carson, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel | USA TODAY Network
