Ethan Orton, teen who brutally killed parents in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, sentenced to life in prison

An Iowa teenager who stabbed his father to death and used an ax to kill his mother in 2021 will spend the next few decades in prison before he’s eligible for parole. Ethan Orton received a life sentence Monday with a chance of parole in 50 years.

Orton pleaded guilty in February to two counts of first-degree murder in the October 2021 deaths of 42-year-old Casey Orton and 41-year-old Misty Scott Slade at the family’s home in Cedar Rapids.

Speaking publicly for the first time since the killings, Orton expressed regret for his actions but said he’d “made peace” with what he’d done, CBS affiliate KGAN-TV reported.

“I even said I’d give my left arm just to get both of them back, see what I could do, but I had to come to a realization that this is what it is today, and thankfully I made peace with that,” he said.

Police said Orton stabbed his parents and then used an ax on his mother when he saw she was still alive. Officers found him covered in blood outside the home. He was 17 at the time, but was charged and tried as an adult.

Orton told investigators at the scene that he killed his parents to “take charge of my life.”

Forensic psychologist Tracy Thomas, who holds a doctorate in clinical psychology, testified that Orton sought acceptance and validation from his parents but felt rejected by them, according to KGAN-TV. Thomas said Orton killed them after he received an email from Slade that she and his father wouldn’t be a part of Orton’s life after he turned 18, according to the station.

Orton’s trial was delayed while he underwent a mental evaluation. He was found competent to stand trial in November.