Teen Who Killed Parents, Partied Blames Devil, Drugs

Tyler Hadley told pal he had taken ecstasy before murders
By Rob Quinn,  Newser Staff
Posted Jul 21, 2011 8:34 AM CDT
Tyler Hadley Blamed Devil, Drugs for Parents' Killings
This photo provided by the St. Lucie County Sheriff's office shows Tyler Hadley, 17, of Port St. Lucie, Fla.    (AP Photo/St. Lucie County Sheriff's office)

The Florida teen accused of killing his parents with a hammer before throwing a party told his best friend that he was possessed by the devil and had taken three ecstasy pills before the murder. The friend says Tyler Hadley, 17, confessed to the killings and showed him the bodies after the last guests had left, the New York Daily News reports. "I opened the door," says the friend. "I saw bloody sheets piled everywhere. I looked down and I saw his dad's leg there." The friend tipped off police, who found the bodies in the home's master bedroom under a pile of furniture.

Ecstasy doesn't usually cause violent reactions, but the teen "could have been having a first episode psychotic break that was made worse or triggered" by a large dose of the drug, a neuropharmacologist tells ABC. The friend also told police that Hadley's plan was to commit suicide by taking 10 Percocet pills "once he got caught, but that failed." Hadley, who is on suicide watch in jail, has been charged with second-degree murder. His attorney entered a not guilty plea on his behalf yesterday. (More Tyler Hadley stories.)

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