Teen guilty of 'thrill kill' murder, beheading

DETROIT, Michigan (CNN/In Session) -- A jury rejected an 18-year-old's claim that he acted in self-defense, finding him guilty of murder in the gory stabbing, beheading and torching of a Michigan man.

The jury of eight men and four women deliberated for more than 10 hours over two days before finding Jean Pierre Orlewicz guilty of first-degree murder, felony murder and mutilation.

Jurors did not look at anyone as they filed into the courtroom. The defendant's family remained stoic, but the father of victim Daniel Sorenson broke into sobs.

During the trial, some of the most gruesome details of Sorenson's slaying came from the youthful-looking defendant's own lips.

Prosecutors called Sorenson's slaying a "thrill killing." They alleged that Orlewicz was excited by the prospect of killing someone and getting away with it.

Orlewicz, of Canton, Michigan, took the stand and admitted that he killed Sorenson, 26, but insisted that it was in self-defense. He admitted stabbing Sorenson 13 times after an extortion plan went awry and Sorenson threatened his life.

"There was not a murder," Orlewicz testified.

On November 7, Orlewicz said, he, Alexander Letkemann and Sorenson arrived at his grandfather's house in Canton, Michigan, with the intent of robbing Adam Duwe, who had just inherited $40,000. But Orlewicz said he felt "icky" about the plan and was going to pretend Duwe couldn't make it. That's when Sorenson's temper flared, Orlewicz testified.

Orlewicz said Sorenson took out a gun and threatened to kill him.

"You think this is a game?" Orlewicz recalled Sorenson screaming. "I'm going to drop you to your knees and blow your frigging brains out."

Orlewicz said Sorenson began waiving the gun around, so he grabbed a knife from a tool bench and stabbed him from behind.

As the two fought, Orlewicz said, the gun dropped from Sorenson's hand. Sorenson scrambled to find the gun, Orlewicz said, and the two continued to struggle. "I kept trying to stab him and get leverage in the fight," Orlewicz said. "I was stabbing him in the back."

During his testimony Orlewicz also admitted that after Sorenson died, he used a hacksaw to decapitate him. Orlewicz said he threw Sorenson's torso into a field and set it on fire. The defendant said he took a blowtorch to Sorenson's hands to cover up fingerprints.

Orlewicz told the jury he feared that Sorenson was tied to the Mafia and that his family would come after him.

He said his actions after the death were all out of panic.

Orlewicz corroborated Letkemann's testimony that Letkemann stood by and did nothing as Orlewicz stabbed Sorenson.

Letkemann, 18, pleaded guilty to second-degree murder April 1. He will face 20 to 30 years in prison in exchange for his testimony against Orlewicz.

Orlewicz denied Letkemann's assertions that after the killing, he played with Sorenson's head like a puppet.

"That's someone else's imagination," he said.

Teen guilty of 'thrill kill' murder, beheading - CNN.com

Once again we find that life can be stranger than fiction!

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"Destiny must be shaped and not left to mere chance."..Spencer Collins

It's possible he was threatened and then panicked after the killing. I guess the jurors didn't buy it though.
There are too many people in the world. That's why we have so many murders, so much pollution, so much racial tension. That's why I advocate birth control. Trouble is, uneducated people have more kids than ever.

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Salty

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With the tax cuts on the "lower" middle class,some idiots think it's an incentive to have more kids. I know one jerk who is building a baseball team family.He is out of work most of the time and his wife basically supports him.He braggs about his fabulous tax returns with all those deductions and thinks GW is a hero !!!

Large families are on the rise again.

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"Destiny must be shaped and not left to mere chance."..Spencer Collins

Really? Hmmph. Maybe it is due to the tax deductions, but I hate to see the population undergo another spurt. It's already bulging with immigrants.
Where is real leadership? How come we don't have a helmsman to guide us and convey the wisdom of a variety of advisors? How come movie stars aren't putting on pro bono ads explaining in tender terms how we are killing not only our country but our planet by mass producing low forms of the human species-uneducated, under supervised.
The stark opposition to abstinence teaching is having the reverse affect intended. Kids are getting the message it's O.K. to have sex (due to the open argument between radical stances on both sides. And some kids always choose the way that sounds fun and is endorsed by many adults). But they aren't using birth control pills and such, because that would take a smidgen of responsible consideration. When you've already -subconsciously or consciously- chosen a value system that releases you from all blame cause it's a natural instinct, how are you gonna make the leap that you need to protect yourself and your partner from unwanted pregnancy and STD's?

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Michigan Teen Gets Life Sentence for 'Thrill Kill' Beheading

Update

DETROIT — A teenager convicted of killing a man, then beheading him and setting fire to his body in what prosecutors called a thrill killing was sentenced Monday to life in prison without parole.

Jean Pierre Orlewicz, 18, didn't speak before being sentenced to the mandatory term."I am grateful that you are going away for the rest of your life, because in my view I believe you will kill again," Wayne County Circuit Court Judge Annette Berry said.

Orlewicz was convicted last month of first-degree murder in the Nov. 7 slaying of Daniel Sorensen, 26, in Canton Township.

Sorensen's father, James Sorensen, called the killing "the ultimate act of cowardice." As James Sorensen choked back tears, he told the court: "My son was a victim of a person seeking a trophy."

FOXNews.com - Michigan Teen Gets Life Sentence for 'Thrill Kill' Beheading - Local News | News Articles | National News | US News

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"Destiny must be shaped and not left to mere chance."..Spencer Collins

Life sentence?!?!!?...

I would given him a certain chamber...

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"You get the respect that you give" - cnredd

Michigan has no death penalty other than being placed in general population while serving one's sentence. That seems more effective than states who do have the death penalty..

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"Destiny must be shaped and not left to mere chance."..Spencer Collins

There is a dark sarcasm side of me that wants to ask this kid if he thought the guy he killed was a zombie.


NOT good things to do if you're just acting in "self-defense".
You're demonstrating a CLEAR course of action to AVOID societal evaluation of your actions. Not consistent with "classical" "self-defense".

Typically (and expectedly), the "proper" self-defense actions are to come clean to your actions to the police, and show how you were attacked.

These actions also help to void a "insanity" plea, because they show a clear thinking process to attempt to escape punishment.
"Insanity" is supposed to mean you don't know the difference between right and wrong, and if you're trying to avoid punishment then you obviously understand what you did was wrong.


My gut reaction is that it was Sorenson who tried to back out, and Orlewicz who reacted with violence.
The degree of violence this guy demonstrated? The pre-meditation in his actions to avoid getting caught after the deed was done?
At least he is off the streets. And hopefully the "without parole" sticks so nobody will have to worry about this little punk again.



If that is true, then perhaps the "death sentence" will come about anyways...

With a name like Jean Pierre his days are numbered and his nights will prove to be most unpleasant.

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"Destiny must be shaped and not left to mere chance."..Spencer Collins

I used to think most of the crazys lived in Fla. or Texas. I'm beginning to worry about Michigan Spencer.