A Saugus, Massachusetts man pleaded guilty Wednesday to manslaughter in the beating death of his father more than two decades ago, admitting he wrapped the man's body in a carpet and covered it with a tarp inside their Milford, New Hampshire home. Douglas Herlihy, now 40, was just 17 years old when he killed his father, Paul Herlihy, a 50-year-old antiques dealer, sometime between August 23 and 24, 2003.
Herlihy entered his plea in Hillsborough County Superior Court in Nashua, admitting to manslaughter and attempted falsification of physical evidence, according to The Boston Globe. The plea agreement calls for the remaining indicted counts, including alternative charges of second-degree murder, to be dismissed, according to InDepthNH.
Paul Herlihy's body was discovered badly decomposed at his home at 425 Nashua Street after his sister requested a welfare check on August 27, 2003, per the Globe's reporting. Milford Police found him wrapped in a carpet and covered by a blue tarp, the outlet notes. An autopsy determined he died from multiple blunt-force trauma, with the Globe specifying the fatal injury as blunt-force trauma to the head with a skull fracture.
A Cold Case That Took Nearly 22 Years to Crack
Nearly 22 years passed without an arrest before investigators revived the case, per the Globe's account. The New Hampshire Cold Case Unit and State Police investigators eventually obtained an arrest warrant for Douglas Herlihy, and he was arrested in Saugus in June 2025 after New Hampshire authorities alerted Massachusetts police that they wanted to question him, according to Boston.com. He has been held without bail since June 25, 2025, per the Globe.
The case was investigated jointly by the New Hampshire Cold Case Unit, the Milford Police Department, and the New Hampshire State Police, the same InDepthNH report states. New Hampshire Attorney General John M. Formella said the pursuit of justice does not end with the passage of time, according to the Globe, adding that the Cold Case Unit and its law enforcement partners remain committed to pursuing answers and accountability decades after a crime.
Conflicting Reports on Sentencing Range
Accounts differ on exactly what prison term Herlihy faces. InDepthNH reports that his plea agreement calls for a stand-committed sentence of 12 to 24 years in New Hampshire State Prison for manslaughter, while Boston.com reports the agreement calls for a sentence of 12 to 14 years. Separately, the Globe reports that prosecutors are expected to recommend a state prison sentence of 12 to 24 years.
Under the agreement, Herlihy could shave a year off his minimum sentence by completing a prison substance-abuse program, the Globe reports, while Boston.com describes the same opportunity as a one-year reduction available if he completes a program for addiction or mental-health rehabilitation while in custody. A sentencing hearing has not yet been scheduled and is expected in early 2027, per InDepthNH.
