Bizarre: the house party of Tyler Hadley

True crime lovers, we're going to dive into a case that will leave you astonished. That there are such sick people in the world; you think you've seen it all... If you think you've watched all the Netflix documentaries, you might expect to be a bit worn out by all the true crime hits around you, but just wait. Because years ago (this took place in 2011) I read an article on the Rolling Stone site, and it has never left me. So now I thought: you true crime lovers will surely find this interesting too. Excusez-moi for any nightmares that may come. We're going to talk about the house party that Tyler Hadley threw at the age of seventeen in his parental home in St. Lucie on Saturday, July 16, 2011.

Tyler Hadley had been telling his friends all week that he was going to throw a party, but no one believed him. His parents were incredibly strict and would never approve. When he posted the message on Facebook that evening ‘party at my house hmu’ (hmu = hit me up), there was disbelief all around. ‘What if your parents come home?’ a friend asked online, to which Tyler replied that it wouldn't happen. ‘Just trust me.’

The news of the party at the Hadleys — that a boy would be home alone — spread like wildfire and soon about sixty people were present. ‘I don't want anyone smoking inside,’ Tyler told his guests, ‘it's my parents’ house.’ That turned out to be falling on deaf ears: beer pong was mostly played, empty bottles were everywhere in the living room, and cigarettes were extinguished on the carpet, on the counter, and on the walls. Tyler seemed to care very little. He was mostly worried about the neighbors. What if they complained to the police about the noise?

‘You know, just stay inside. You can smoke inside. I don't care.’

Where his parents had suddenly gone, his friends asked. He told friend Mark Andrews: ‘They went to Georgia,’ to Ryan Stonesifer: ‘They are in Orlando.’ and to Richard Wouters he said: ‘They don't live here. This is my house.’

Tyler's friend Markey Philips couldn't be at the party because he was at his grandparents‘ that weekend. A few evenings before, he had played games with Tyler and ’he seemed normal then,‘ he later told the police. But he had noticed something during an incident two weeks prior. Tyler had suddenly told Markey ’that he wanted to kill his parents and then throw a big party.’ According to Tyler, no one had ever done that: throwing a big party while the bodies were still in the house. Markey found it strange, but assumed Tyler was joking. He had said before that he wanted to kill his parents, but no one took that seriously.

An hour after midnight, the party was still in full swing and about a hundred people were present. Beer had been brought in, people were getting more and more drunk, and the house became one big mess. Tyler didn't care: ‘Just do what you want,’ he said to his guests, most of whom he didn't even know personally.

Around that time, Tyler asked his friend Michael Mandell if he could step outside for a moment so they could talk. When they stood at the end of the street, Tyler said to him: ‘I killed my parents. Michael, I mean it. I'm not lying to you. If you look closely enough, you can see the evidence.’ Tyler pointed to the end of the street, where Michael saw his parents' car; how had they left without a car?

Michael told Tyler that he still didn't believe him, so Tyler took him to the garage, where he turned on the light. There he saw a bloody footprint, after which he immediately left the garage and Tyler took him to his parents' bedroom.

There he saw various traces of blood on the walls, chairs with blood-soaked towels on them, and underneath he saw a large mound. And under that large mound lay a bloody, white leg.

Tyler began to explain how he did it and why. He had hidden his parents‘ mobile phones so they couldn't call for help. Then he took three ecstasy pills because he was afraid he wouldn't dare to do it sober. In the garage, he found a hammer: that would be his murder weapon. His parents asked him why, to which he replied: ’Why not?’

Michael listened to it all. He didn't leave the party. In fact, he stayed for another 45 minutes and took several selfies with Tyler. Before he left, he took all the percocet pills that Tyler wanted to use to commit suicide later that evening.

The police arrived around two o'clock after calls from the neighbors. Tyler spoke with them, they left, and the party continued. Shortly after half past three in the morning, Tyler posted on his Facebook that there would be ‘another party tomorrow.’ And that might have happened, had it not been for the police standing right at the door: Michael had called them and told them everything.

Tyler immediately knew what awaited him: ‘I know I'm going to Rock Road (the address of the St. Lucie County Jail). Just take me there.’

He is currently serving his prison sentence (life without the possibility of parole) in the Okeechobee Correctional Institution for men. He still writes to his family and friends occasionally, including Michael Mandell. He tells him he forgives him for calling the police, but also writes: ‘I'm in prison because of you.’

Read the entire article here in Rolling Stone, (warning: with bizarre and gruesome details) and/or watch the documentary below if you want to know more about this case.