A Kent County judge on Wednesday found 35-year-old Nathan S. Board guilty in the beating deaths of his in-laws, each of whom suffered multiple blows to the head with a hammer.
The findings of guilt on two counts of first-degree, premeditated murder means Board will spend the rest of his life in prison. Sentencing has been set for Oct. 5.
Kent County Circuit Court Judge J. Joseph Rossi found Board to be guilty, but mentally ill, which means Board is eligible for mental health treatment while in custody of the Michigan Department of Corrections.
Before delivering the verdicts Wednesday afternoon, Rossi reviewed evidence in the case, including Board's admissions to police.
"The evidence is clear,'' Rossi said in announcing the guilty verdicts.
A bench trial before Rossi got underway on Tuesday and included testimony from more than a dozen witnesses. It was Kent County's first murder trial with coronavirus safeguards in place.
Board entered the Bowne Township home of Theodore and Patty Syrek and stood over the sleeping couple for about 45 minutes before attacking them with a hammer, according to testimony.
“As soon as they started moving, he attacked,’’ Kent County Prosecutor Chris Becker told the court. “He intended to kill them.’’
Defense attorney John Pyrski asked Rossi to consider Board’s mental state at the time of the killings.
“There is evidence to show my client may be guilty, but mentally ill,’’ Pyrski said in closing statements on Wednesday. “He was mentally ill at the time the crimes occurred.’’
At the time of the murders, Board was separated from his wife, Sarah. She called police and asked for a welfare check on her parents after being unable to reach them by phone.
Kent County deputies entered the home on Sept. 4, 2018 and found what was described as a “scene of horror.’’
Autopsies showed that Theodore Syrek, 66, was struck at least 15 times in the head. Patty Syrek, 62, suffered at least 10 blows to the head.
“It is certainly reflective of a significant degree of force,’’ testified Dr. David Start, who conducted the autopsies. Both victims had additional injuries indicating they tried to defend themselves from the onslaught of blows, Start testified.
Board was booked into the Kent County Jail a day after the bodies were discovered. In an interview with detectives, Board admitted to the attacks.
“I just lost my head,’’ he told Detective Jason Russo in an interview played for the court on Tuesday.
Pyrski called two witnesses on Wednesday, including the defendant’s mother, Diane Board.
She testified that Nathan was raised in a loving, Christian home, but was beset with behavioral problems from an early age, including Attention Deficit Disorder.
“When he was a teenager, I believe around 14, he asked me what depression was, so I took him to Pine Rest and he started seeing a psychiatrist there,’’ she testified.
Nathan was later diagnosed with bipolar disorder and depression, she said.
He eventually was put on a medication that worked well for 10 to 11 years but he discontinued taking it because of adverse side effects. An alternative medication, Diane Board testified, was not helpful.
“He would get very mad and angry and his anxiety level was very high,’’ she told the court. “A lot of abusive language. He was controlling; very paranoid. And I think he was debating things that really weren’t true.’’
After Board’s arrest, his attorney asked for a competency exam, which took several months to complete. Board eventually was found to be competent and criminally responsible, setting the stage for trial.
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