A Wisconsin teenager has been sentenced to life in prison after pleading guilty to the first-degree intentional homicide of his 10-year-old cousin, Lily Peters. Carson Peters-Berger, now 19, committed the crime in April 2022 when he was 14.
Chippewa County Judge Steven Gibbs accepted the guilty plea on Wednesday and imposed the sentence. Under the terms of a plea agreement, charges of first-degree sexual assault causing great bodily harm and first-degree child sexual assault involving a child under 13 were dismissed.
According to the criminal complaint, Peters-Berger persuaded Peters to leave a trail and explore the woods near Chippewa Falls on April 24, 2022, as she was biking home from her aunt's house. Her body was discovered the following day, and an autopsy revealed she had been beaten, strangled, and sexually assaulted.
Peters-Berger was arrested the day after his cousin's body was found.
Attorneys for Peters-Berger had sought to have the case moved to juvenile court, arguing that the adult criminal justice system would not provide the necessary mental health treatment. However, the judge denied this request, citing the severity of the offenses. A state appeals court upheld the decision to keep the case in adult court.