Left: Heidi Dutton (Washington County Sheriff’s Office). Right: Larry and Deborah Dutton (Livingston Funeral Home).
A 19-year-old woman from Oklahoma could be facing a lifetime behind bars for the gruesome killing of her grandparents, a crime she committed with the help of her boyfriend. Heidi Dutton, who was just 17 at the time of the murders, was recently handed a life sentence for the murder of her grandparents, Larry Dutton, 73, and Deborah Dutton, 67. She pleaded guilty to two charges of first-degree murder, desecration of a corpse, and conspiracy to commit murder. In an attempt to be considered for parole, she is required to serve 85% of a 45-year sentence, which amounts to slightly more than 38 years.
The chilling incident underscores the severity of the crime and the harsh consequences faced by the young offender. It serves as a haunting reminder of the tragic outcome of a family relationship turned deadly.
Her boyfriend, 22-year-old Lucas Anthony Walker, was sentenced to 35 years in federal prison as he is a citizen of the Cherokee Nation.
Despite her young age at the time of the crime, the sentence handed down to Heidi Dutton reflects the gravity of her actions and the irreparable loss suffered by her family. The case has attracted significant attention due to the shocking nature of the crime and the disturbing details that have emerged during the trial.
“This was a calculated and brutal crime, but the law requires us to weigh youth and culpability,” Washington County District Attorney Will Drake said in a statement. “This sentence holds Heidi Dutton accountable, mirrors the sentence imposed on her co-defendant, and spares the victims’ family the trauma of trial and years of appeals.”
Authorities say Dutton and Walker killed her grandparents a few days before Christmas Day 2022. Neighbors and family members became concerned about the victims after not hearing from them and called cops to complete a welfare check at their home in Dewey, some 50 miles north of Tulsa. According to the federal complaint, deputies from the Washington County Sheriff’s Office conducted a search of the home on Jan. 20, 2023, and discovered the elder Duttons buried in a shallow grave in the backyard.
“[Dutton] was determined to be the adopted daughter, and biological granddaughter, of the two victims,” the complaint notes.
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Blood had been cleaned from the victims’ bedroom but some seeped into the floorboards. Both suspects admitted to killing the victims in interviews with cops. Heidi Dutton said it was her boyfriend who murdered her grandparents at her behest.
Walker told investigators he entered the Dutton home on Dec. 19, 2022, as the victims slept. He took a .22 caliber pistol from the home and waited in his girlfriend’s bedroom until he heard noises coming from the victims’ room. He waited outside the bedroom until Deborah Dutton opened the door. Walker then shot her in the face, authorities said.
Larry Dutton got out of bed and rushed Walker who tried to open fire but the gun jammed. Walker took out a knife and stabbed him multiple times in the face, chest and stomach. He also stabbed Deborah Dutton.
The defendants then wrapped the victims’ bodies in sheets and carried them outside to the backyard where they buried them in shallow graves. Ring camera footage captured the couple carrying at least one victim together.
As for the motive, Dutton didn’t give much of a reason other than “she wanted them dead,” the Bartlesville Examiner Enterprise reported, citing court documents and preliminary hearing testimony.
“We kill them,” she reportedly said.
His wife was originally from Tennessee, a retired Staff Sgt. in the U.S. Air Force, and a former chef.
