LIMESTONE COUNTY, AL- An 18-year-old from Alabama, Mason Sisk, has been handed a life sentence without the possibility of parole for the brutal murder of five family members, including an infant and two young children. The judge presiding over the case, Circuit Judge Chadwick Wise, described the crime as “draped in unmitigated evil.” Sisk was convicted in April by an Alabama jury on multiple counts of capital murder for the 2019 killings of his father, stepmother, and three younger siblings.
Sisk was spared the death penalty due to his age at the time of the crimes. According to local reporters, Sisk showed no visible reaction to the sentence and remained silent in court. Following the sentencing, Limestone County District Attorney Brian C.T. Jones shared a written statement with the press. He expressed his fear of Sisk in comparison to other killers that he’s encountered throughout his career. Jones further described Sisk as “clearly one of the most dangerous people who will ever be sentenced in Limestone County.”
At the tender age of 14, Sisk committed the horrifying act of shooting each of his family members in the head at their Elkmont home. The victims were his father, John Wayne Sisk, 38, his stepmother, Mary Sisk, 35, and their three children- 6-year-old Grayson, 4-year-old Aurora, and 6-month-old Colson. Prosecutors argued that Sisk had severe anger management issues and had previously threatened his entire family. Court documents revealed that Sisk had once attempted to poison his stepmother, who had a severe peanut allergy, by adding peanut butter to her coffee.
Judge Wise stated that the Sisk case was a rare instance where a life sentence without parole was justified for a juvenile defendant. He noted the victims were killed while they were in bed, making the circumstances of the Sisk case even more gruesome than other cases where life sentences have been upheld for juvenile defendants.
A report from Sisk’s juvenile probation officer in November 2020 indicated that Sisk has shown no remorse and has not mentioned his family during his detention.