KALKASKA, Mich. (AP) - A northern Michigan man has been convicted of first-degree murder and torture charges in the January 2017 stabbing death of his father-in-law.
The Traverse City Record-Eagle reports it took about a half-hour Thursday for a jury in Kalkaska to convict Brian Degroot in the death of 54-year-old Michael Brandt. He faces a mandatory sentence of life in prison without parole.
Defense lawyer Kyle Trevas had challenged whether the killing should be considered a premeditated act.
Jessica Kay Degroot of Kalkaska last year was sentenced to 10 to 15 years in prison after pleading guilty to manslaughter in her father’s death. Authorities say Brian Degroot killed Brandt at Brandt’s Springfield Township house and Jessica Degroot helped clean up.
Brandt was stabbed and shot with a crossbow. A friend found him dead.
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Information from: Traverse City Record-Eagle, http://www.record-eagle.com
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