Sixteen-year-old Vincent Parker will be tried as an adult, according to authorities, after admitting in court on Wednesday that he killed his parents for administering typical parental punishments.
Parker was an honor roll student at Norview High School in Norfolk, Virginia, at the time of the murders, which occurred just before Christmas in 2013.
Parker first attacked his mother Carol as she exited the bathroom of their home , MyFox8 reported.
Describing the murder to police, he said he “doused his mother with pepper spray” and “stabbed her in the eye.” He then beat her in the face and head with a baseball bat and crowbar “until she stopped breathing.”
After that, the 16-year-old waited for his father, Wayne, to return home from work. That’s when he struck him with the crowbar and stabbed him multiple times.
While the attack killed Wayne Parker, he did live long enough to incriminate his son in the assault.
When police started questioning Vincent as to his motivations, he had this chilling comment:
“I just remember getting mad,” he told investigators. “It’s all from my dad. All this stuff like my dad taking away my iPod and stuff.”
Due to the nature of the crimes and the circumstances surrounding them, Vincent Parker was admitted for psychiatric review, which found him to be “both sane and intelligent.”
Defense attorney Emily Munn told the judge that she hoped the court would consider letting Parker serve “at least part of his sentence” in a juvenile facility.
Being convicted of the maximum sentence could mean decades in prison, but Allen Taylor, his grandfather, is hoping for a lighter sentence.
“I want him to get some type of counseling,” Taylor said in comments to WTKR . “Help him to grow up and be an understanding man. Be sorry for what he did do. I told him to ask God to forgive him for what he did.”
Responding to the question of whether he forgave his grandson, Taylor said, “Well, yes, I have. Because if I don’t forgive him, who will?… We had to give it to God. He’s the only one who can help us now.”
While there are some key differences, this case is somewhat reminiscent of a 2012 double homicide in which a 14-year-old Florida student shot his parents. He later regretted the action, although there is no indication the suspect in this case feels the same.
Do you think Vincent Parker should be tried as an adult for what is being called the “iPod murder” of his parents? Sound off in our comments section below.