A Wisconsin man was sentenced to life in prison in September 2022 for beating his mother to death with a metal bar and killing the family dog inside their Avoca trailer home, capping a case that began with a frantic 911 call blaming the wrong man. Sean R. Pickett, now in his late twenties, had told police his mother's boyfriend was responsible before investigators determined that story was false.
Pickett was sentenced Sept. 20 to life in prison for killing his mother, Susan Pickett, and their family dog, Chico, according to themonroetimes.com. The court set his first parole eligibility on the homicide charge at 40 years and added an 18-month prison term plus 24 months of extended supervision for the animal mistreatment conviction, the outlet reported. An Iowa County jury had convicted Pickett on July 7 of first-degree intentional homicide and mistreatment of animals causing death, per the same report. The Cinemaholic has also profiled the case, noting Pickett was deemed competent to stand trial.
A 911 Call That Didn't Add Up
Authorities say Pickett killed his 54-year-old mother and the family dog sometime between May 9 and May 10, 2021, according to wkow.com. Pickett called 911 on May 10, 2021, reporting that his mother and dog were deceased at the residence, with the call logged at 3:41 p.m., the Monroe Times reported. Responding officers noticed blood spatter on his jeans, shirt, and shoes, the outlet said.
Susan D. Pickett, age 54 of Avoca and formerly of Mineral Point, passed away at her home on Tuesday, May 11, 2021, according to her obituary posted by gorgenfh.com. A forensic pathologist testified that her death resulted from extensive blunt-force head injuries, with wounds the pathologist described as clearly from a linear object that struck the head, and that she also suffered stab wounds, per the Monroe Times account.
From a False Accusation to a Changed Story
According to a criminal complaint cited by weau.com, Pickett initially accused his mother's boyfriend of the killings before admitting that account never happened. A separate complaint summarized by wkow.com alleges Pickett told investigators that voices in his head were telling him to kill his mother and the dog. Investigators say he ultimately admitted stabbing his mother in the throat and beating her with the metal bar six to eight times, the Monroe Times report states.
At trial, Pickett's attorney, identified in the Monroe Times report as Erickson, argued that he had killed his mother in self-defense. A Wisconsin jury found Pickett guilty on all charges related to the deaths of his mother and the family dog, according to courttv.com, which covered the trial as it unfolded in the summer of 2022.
Sentencing Closes a Years-Long Case
The conviction on both the homicide and animal mistreatment counts led directly to the September sentencing, where the judge handed down the life term alongside the separate animal cruelty penalty, the Monroe Times reported. After the initial false accusation against the boyfriend was dispelled, investigators pieced together the final hours inside the Avoca trailer home where Susan Pickett and Chico were found dead.
Court coverage of the case has focused on the competing accounts presented at trial — the self-defense argument from the defense and the account investigators built from Pickett's own admissions about the metal bar and stabbing. The dossier of court reporting does not address where Pickett is currently being held or whether any appeal has been filed following the September sentencing.
