How does an Alpha-Gen teenager wind up committing murder?

Did Sierra Halseth Know The Consequences Of Her Brutal Actions?

Photo by Ricardo Gomez Angel on Unsplash

The horrific death of 45-year-old Daniel Halseth is centered as much on the motives, mindset, and manipulations of his killers — daughter Sierra Halseth, 16, and boyfriend Aaron Guerrero, 18 — as it is on the grisly details of his murder.

The shocking case became Internationally famous when the young lovers casually recorded themselves sharing an alarming, remorse-free video on Sierra’s phone.

Aaron says, “Welcome back to our YouTube channel three days,” he and a giggling Sierra hold up three fingers, “Day Three, after murdering somebody.”

Sierra says, “Whoa, don’t put that on the camera.”

Her boyfriend ignores her, “And it was worth it.” Sierra agrees, “We had s*x a lot today.” Aaron concurs, “I got plenty of s*x today.”

He taps Sierra on the cheek a few times, wraps his arm around her throat, and chillingly says, “Sex was payment for doing it.”

Doing what? Brutally murdering Daniel, Sierra’s father, that’s what.

Sierra’s phone video, eventually released on YouTube, haunts many who’ve viewed it over the years since the crime occurred.

Has Social Media Erased Reality?

According to family therapist Jacent Wamala, who didn’t treat the teens, when Sierra and Aaron violently murdered Daniel, they may have been entirely out of touch with reality.

But were they?

Experts wondered why the teens made a video indicating they murdered someone and then posted it on Sierra’s phone, which police eventually discovered.

Wamala wasn’t surprised to see the Gen-Alpha digital natives speaking so casually about murder. They’ve grown up behind the latest technologies, screens, and social media. Sharing their lives with their peers and the world is expected.

Is that the case with Sierra and Aaron? Were they unaware of the consequences of their actions? Or were the lovers so callous they just murdered without any conscience.

Toxic And Convoluted Power Dynamics

This grisly case was built upon a matrix of complicated power dynamics.

Bitterly divorced parents were contesting custody over their difficult, moody, withdrawn youngest daughter. Her parents were also upset about her relationship with an abusive, self-proclaimed bipolar and LSD-dosing boyfriend.

As if all those complicated relationships weren’t stressful enough, they were cemented by a web of toxic he/she said court documents, unsubstantiated accusations, half-truths, and outright lies.

The finger-pointing included Sierra accusing her father of being a drug addict and pedophile who abused her.

A Young Couple In Love

Elizabeth Halseth Helgelien met and fell in love with her first husband, Daniel, in Salem, Oregon, in 2000. The couple married on July 2, 2001, after Elizabeth graduated from high school.

In short order, the couple had three beautiful babies. Lucy in 2002, Connor in 2003, and Sierra in 2004.

Daniel’s mom, Christine Halseth, explained on Investigation Discovery’s American Monster, Day Three, that her youngest granddaughter was “cute as a little girl but was self-centered, selfish and wanted her way all the time.”

She confessed how Sierra was “always a mystery with more than one side to her personality: a difficult and troubled child.”

Christine noted her granddaughter was often withdrawn, had difficulty warming up to anyone, and had more than one side to her personality.

At one family gathering in Oregon while hanging out with all the cousins, Sierra allegedly said when “you don’t get your way (with your parents), you should “just get rid of them.”

No one in the family realized just how troubled Sierra was at that point. A heartbroken Christine said, “What evil resides in a person’s soul to do that?”

A History of Family Problems

The family moved to Las Vegas, Nevada, in 2008 for Daniel’s career and fell in love with the desert city. Then, Elizabeth won a seat in the Nevada State Senate, which was the beginning of the end for the marriage due to frequent spousal separations.

Daniel filed for divorce in 2011. His actions hit Sierra the hardest. Elizabeth took all three kids in 2012 and moved to Alaska with a new boyfriend. Daniel was heartbroken to be separated from his kids but moved to Texas for new career opportunities.

After the 2020 Pandemic struck, Elizabeth, her new husband, and the three children returned to Las Vegas. Daniel, who’d struggled to see his estranged kids while they were living in Alaska, made arrangements to move nearby.

In 2020, the ex-spouses began formally disputing custody arrangements in the courts. The debate primarily concerned Sierra, who had vaguely implied to Daniel she was unsafe living with her mother and stepfather.

Family members questioned Sierra’s true motives, but she got her way as she often did and started living with her father.

Was Sierra Manipulating Her Father?

Her grandmother believed the teen might be manipulating Daniel so she could avoid her mother’s much stricter house rules.

Less than a week before he was murdered, Daniel filed a motion to alter Sierra’s custody agreement and “to address CPS intervention.” Further information was not available from the court records due to confidentiality.

Daniel’s family was convinced he was drawn into a web of Sierra’s lies. But he thought he was protecting her when he filed for custody in the acrimonious court battle.

Sadly, his parental sacrifice led to his untimely murder.

Forbidden Love

Court records indicate that Sierra and Aaron met on a dating app and were a couple from June 2020 to December 2020. During that time, the teens plotted to rob Aaron’s parents and leave Las Vegas together.

When both sets of parents discovered their plans, they prevented the kids from seeing each other further. Sierra and Aaron continued to communicate secretly.

In the pre-dawn hours of April 8, 2021, Sierra’s boyfriend ran away from home.

Murder

On April 9th, Las Vegas firefighters were called to a blazing fire at Daniel’s Dunphy Court home. The coroner’s office ruled sharp force injuries brutally murdered him, the result of being stabbed approximately 70 times.

His body was discovered dismembered, mutilated, stuffed into a sleeping bag, and burned on the garage floor. Newly purchased blood-stained power tools were found strewn about the house.

Evidence

According to Las Vegas Metropolitan Police arrest warrant, the teens were caught on video purchasing the murder weapons. They bought a circular saw, blades, bleach, lighter fluid, disposable gloves, and drop cloth from stores near Daniel’s home.

Investigators surmised that Sierra and Aaron had stabbed Daniel Halseth to death, set fire to his home, fled in his vehicle, and went to a bank, where they were caught on camera illegally withdrawing his money.

They flagrantly made out while riding public transit in Utah a few days later. They hadn’t purchased tickets. When confronted by transit authorities, they gave their real names, which triggered their arrest.

The couple were taken into custody in Salt Lake City and transported back to Las Vegas, where they were arrested on suspicion of murder in the death of Sierra’s father, Daniel.

The Murder Trial

At her murder trial, Sierra told the judge her father “abused her s*xually, physically and pushed her to drink alcohol.” She stated, “My biological father has traumatized me — trauma I still have to work through every day.”

Sierra’s defense attorney, Michael Sanft, said, “The evidence in the case didn’t allow him to corroborate Sierra’s claims about her father.”

The attorney commented, “There must have been a reason” for the killing, but “I don’t think anyone here says this (case) wasn’t horrible. He concluded, “There was more to the story.”

Sierra’s mother, Elizabeth, told the Review-Journal that she believed what her daughter said about her ex-husband being a pedophile and drug addict. The former state senator reported she’d wanted her daughter removed from Daniel’s home.

“The system failed her at every turn. They could have saved her, and they failed her,” Elizabeth said.

During his time at trial, Aaron said he suffered from mental health issues and explained he hadn’t been in much trouble before the murder. He also said he hadn’t been taking his medication then.

What Was Going On With Sierra?

According to court records, Child Protective Services (CPS) initially interviewed Sierra. In Family Court hearing videos previously obtained by the Review-Journal, Judge Charles Hoskin said, “Something else is going on with Sierra.”

“I don’t know yet what that is, whether that’s parental alienation, whether that’s human trafficking, whether that’s manipulation,” Hoskin explained during an October 2020 hearing. “And I don’t know who at this point is to blame for that.”

Sentencing

In May 2022, the teens pled guilty to all counts of murder with a deadly weapon, conspiracy to commit murder and arson, conspiracy to commit robbery with a deadly weapon, and conspiracy to commit robbery.

They also pled guilty to four counts of fraudulent credit or debit card use.

District Judge Tierra Jones sentenced Sierra and Aaron to life in prison. They have the possibility of parole after 22 years. The defendants were ordered to pay $5,000 in restitution.

Sierra is housed at the Florence McClure Women’s Correctional Center while Aaron is housed at the maximum security High Desert State Prison. Aaron has said he has no plans to have any contact with his former lover.

When Aaron addressed the judge, he apologized to Halseth’s family.

“This is a very, very tragic situation,” said Jones. “I wish that there was something that I was going to say or something that I could do that would stop all the suffering that is going on.”

Daniel’s Family And Friends Said He Lived For His Three Children

While Elizabeth and Sierra claimed Daniel was abusive, his family and friends told a different story.

Three of Daniel’s siblings and his mother spoke during the sentencing hearing. They expressed anger at Sierra. The family said Daniel was a great father who lived for visitations with his kids.

Multiple Halseth family members told the judge they wished Sierra had received the death penalty.

Following the hearing, Daniel’s horrified mother, Christine Halseth, vehemently denied everything her granddaughter had said in her statements about her father.

It was “nothing but a lie.”

Sources

• Braden, Beth, A Doting Nevada Father Became The Victim Of His Own Daughter, Investigation Discovery, Max, American Monster: “Three Days After Murder” on Max.

• Karam, Alec. Teen Lovers Get Life in Prison for Slaughtering Girl’s Father, COUPLES WHO SLAY TOGETHER, DailyBeast, Published, October 21, 6:48 EDT.

• Las Vegas teens sentenced to life in prison with possible parole for murdering father, KTNV, Las Vegas Scripps, Yahoo.com.

• Mahato, Nikita, American Monster on ID: Who murdered Daniel Halseth and why? Sportskeeda.com, Modified June 5, 2023, 04:48 GMT.

• Miller, Rhett, Joshua, Teens charged with killing girl’s dad may not understand consequences: therapist, Published June 11, 2021, Updated June 11, 2021, 2:30 pm ET, NYPost.com.

• Murphy, Vanessa, ‘I’m not a monster,’ Las Vegas teen who killed girlfriend’s father discusses what led to murder, 8newsnow.com, November 7, 2022 / 04:04 pm PST, Revised, November 7, 2022 / 07:40 pm PST.

• Newberg, Katelyn, I hope he went quick,’ says the friend who found Daniel Halseth’s body, Las Vegas Review-Journal, April 23, 2021–6:22 am.

• Newberg, Katelyn, Teen girl, boyfriend sentenced for killing girl’s father, Las Vegas Review-Journal, reviewjournal.com, October 20, 2022–11:13 am.

• New3Staff, Couple sentenced to life in prison for killing girlfriend’s father at Las Vegas home, News3lv.com, Thu, October 20, 2022, 4:26 pm CDT.

• Underwood, Xóchitl, I-TEAM: Blood-soaked rug found in the trunk of the car driven by two teens charged with killing father, 8NewsNow, June 7, 2021, 4:23 PDT, Updated June 8, 2021, 12:13 am PDT.