Nathaniel Dickson was an eighteen year old from South Carolina when he would murder his family
According to court documents Nathaniel Dickson was kicked out of the place he was living after stealing from his roommate so he would move back home
Nathaniel Dickson would shortly after would murder his father, stepmother, stepsister and brother.
Nathaniel Dickson would be arrested, convicted and sentenced to life in prison without parole
Nathaniel Dickson Photos
Nathaniel Dickson FAQ
Where is Nathaniel Dickson now
Nathaniel Dickson is currently incarcerated at Lee Prison in South Carolina
When is Nathaniel Dickson release date
Nathaniel Dickson is serving life without parole
Nathaniel Dickson Sentencing
Nathan Dickson hung his head, barely looking at Judge Cordell Maddox as he admitted gunning down four members of his family more than a year ago without any real motive.
Nathaniel Dickson pleaded guilty today and was sentenced to life in prison, without the possibility for parole, for the deaths of his father, Andy Dickson; his 14-year-old brother, Taylor; his stepsister, Jiliam Salazar; and his stepmother, Maritza Hurtado Dickson.
“In my nine years, this is the most unexplainable and despicable things I have ever seen in my courtroom,” Maddox said, looking at Nathaniel Dickson. “Your brother and your stepsister ? their unlimited potential is gone and wasted.”
“It bothers me that you can’t even tell me why.”
Dickson, who is 20, remained silent as his uncle and another stepsister stood in court, tears in their eyes. He did not move, holding his hands in front of him, as his mother, Patricia Dickson, sobbed in the courtroom.
“Thank you for accepting my plea, and I apologize to the families,” Dickson said.
Tenth Circuit Solicitor Chrissy Adams said the Dickson and Hurtado families both argued against pushing for the death penalty in the case. She said the families thought a lifelong jail sentence would be more of a punishment to Dixon than even a death sentence.
“I want him to remember his little brother, his father ? I want him to remember,” said Nadine Salazar, as she stared at her stepbrother.
The hearing was the end to a case that began April 26, 2008, and according to prosecutors, defense attorneys and investigators was unusual because of Dickson’s apparent lack of motive.
Adams said there were some incidents in the weeks before the slayings that hinted at trouble.
Dickson had been kicked out of an apartment in Anderson for stealing a roommate’s credit card. His girlfriend had broken up with him. When he tried to enlist in the U.S. Marine Corps, he scored too low on the entrance exam to get in ? something he later lied about to friends. He stole about $600 in change from his father.
And there was tension in his parents’ home when he moved back in and wasn’t working.
“Nothing really rises to the level of explaining why this happened that day,” Adams said. “This was a family that loved each other.”
Even in his confession to police in the hours after the slayings, Dickson did not explain why he shot his family.
“I don’t know why I killed my family today,” Dickson said in the statement. “Once I loaded that shotgun and shot Maritza, I could not stop and I did not stop until I shot them all. It hurts inside and I really can’t believe it’s real. I am concerned how all of this may affect my enlistment in the Marine Corps. I am sorry for all the trouble I have caused. It just hurts inside.”
In the statement, which the solicitor read at the hearing, Dickson said he and his father had a disagreement around 2 a.m. that Saturday, because he had come in too late. After a “fitful” night of sleep, Dickson woke, went to his brother’s closet for some clothes and found a 12-gauge shotgun his brother used to hunt squirrels.
Dickson picked up the gun, loaded it and found his stepmother and fired one round, killing her. As his stepsister ran to the kitchen, he followed her and shot her in the laundry room.
Then he found Taylor, yelling at him to stop. Dickson described knocking his brother out, only to come back later and shoot him in the head as Taylor cried for help.
In all, he reloaded the shotgun five times.
Dickson stalked his father, shooting him several times. He struck his final blow as his father called 911 for help. In his statement, Dickson said his father “rolled over and told me ?I love you’ before I took my last shot at him.”
Dickson then left the house and drove to Belton where he spent the day riding four-wheelers with a friend, never mentioning what had happened in his home just hours before. Officers later tested Dickson and he was given a mental evaluation.
What authorities ? including Dickson’s attorneys, Kurt Tavernier and Andy Potter ? found was that Dickson was not drunk nor was he under the influence of any drug when he shot his family. A Greenville psychiatrist, Robert Richards, testified for the defense. He said he could not find evidence of a mental illness that would give attorneys grounds for an insanity defense.
“This kicks at your gut because this was a good family,” Tavernier said. “Nathan was a good kid and we don’t know what made him snap.”