The Britton Family Murders
For this case I watched an episode of Evil Lives Here. It’s season 2 episode 4, titled ‘The Horror I Don’t Remember.’
This episode is told from Sherry Britton’s (now Shafer) point of view. Her entire family was killed by her younger brother, with her being the sole survivor.
Sherry (Britton) Shafer
Background
The Britton family lived in Poughkeepsie, New York. The family consisted of Dennis, Marlene, Sherry, Brian and Jason. They seemed close, and were for awhile, but once Brian became a teenager he started to act out.
Brian’s Obsessions
Sherry didn’t think about it at the time, but Brian went through various stages of obsessions. When he was around thirteen, he started watching a lot of war movies. He would watch the same movies over and over, especially the movie Rambo.
Brian also wanted to go into the Marines after graduation, which the family thought would change him. They thought the Marines would teach him discipline and respect, and they fully supported him.
Brian’s room became a shrine to all things military. He would put up posters, he had various camouflage outfits, gun magazines, hand grenades and Chinese throwing stars. Brian also had several guns in his room, but wasn’t allowed to use them unless his dad gave him permission. Sherry said their dad would teach Brian how to shoot, and they used to have shooting targets in their backyard.
Brian’s behaviors soon turned dark and destructive. Brian had his first girlfriend, but the rule in the house was that the kids could see their significant others on the weekend after all their homework was done. Brian didn’t like this and would constantly yell things like I hope you die and I hate y0u. Again, Sherry didn’t think too much of it.
The Murders
On March 22, 1989, Sherry said her dad picked her up from college around 9pm. Sherry said she hugged and kissed her parents goodnight, talked to her boyfriend for awhile and fell asleep.
The next thing she remembered was waking up in the hospital. Sherry had been shot, once in the head and once in the abdomen. She said her ears were ringing, and her head was bandaged. She kept asking what happened, and the doctors said there had been an accident.
Charles Mittlestaedt Sr., was the lead investigator on the case, and he was also interviewed. He said he had seen a lot of crimes, but nothing as bad as this crime scene.
First, the police walked through the front door, and found blood, hair and bone on the wall and embedded in the carpet. They walked upstairs into the master bedroom, and found 44 year old Dennis, dead on the bed. He had been shot in the face.
The police then walked into the next room and found Marlene and little Jason, laying next to each other. Marlene was shot in the chest, and her nightgown was covered in blood. Jason’s head had been crushed, and the police’s theory is that his head was hit with the gun. Jason didn’t die right away, but eventually died because of his injuries.
The police finally found Sherry, who was 19 at the time. The police realized Sherry had been shot somewhere else, went into the bathroom to wash her hands and crawled back into her bed. Sherry was rushed to the hospital.
Brian’s Confession and Arrest
After Brian killed his family, he went next door to his uncle’s house. The police caught up with him and wanted to question him. Brian told the police that a masked intruder had broken in and killed his family.
Detective Mittlestaedt was surprised that Brian wasn’t showing emotion or remorse, and immediately knew he killed his family.
Brian admitted it almost right away. He said his parents were on his case, and had even became abusive. It was obvious that Brian had planned these murders, and the police’s theory is that his family found out he was skipping school to hang out with his girlfriend. Brian didn’t like being told what to do, and he killed them. Brian was asked where the guns were, and he said in the attic.
Sherry was told at the hospital that Brian had killed her parents and her brother, and was arrested. Sherry said she was stunned, and now was all alone.
Brian Britton when he was arrested in 1989.
Trial and Conviction
At Brian’s trial in 1990, the prosecution said that Brian had killed because he became obsessed with the movie Rambo. Brian had become obsessed with the military and war.
Brian’s defense was that he had been physically and mentally abused. His defense attorney also said he was forced to watch movies about the war with his dad.
Brian Britton was sentenced to twenty five years to life in prison, with the possibility of parole. He showed no emotion or remorse.
Brian in 1990 vs Brian in a more recent photo
Other
Years later, he sent his sister, Sherry a letter saying he was sorry. Sherry said in this episode that she didn’t forgive him and didn’t want to ever see him again. She hasn’t seen her brother since March 22, 1989.
Sherry created an online petition and has written a letter to the parole board for her brother to never get out of prison. She said he should die in prison.
He has been denied parole many times.
I could not find any photos online of the victims. Again, the victims were Dennis, Marlene and Jason Britton. Also, Sherry was a victim too and thank God she survived.
FINAL THOUGHTS
I feel really sorry for Sherry. I don’t fault her at all for not wanting to see her brother get out of prison. As she said, he has never given a reason for why he killed his family or why he tried to kill her. Sherry said that Brian even said he was going to finish what he started, meaning she thinks if he gets out, he’ll kill again. Brian is a monster and should remain in prison.
Sources
https://apnews.com/article/3be8342a555cdb48245cd554481bf18d
https://www.nytimes.com/1989/03/23/nyregion/parents-and-a-brother-slain-by-self-styled-rambo-16.html
