Death row inmate Jeffrey Weisheit asked Indiana’s parole board Friday to commute his sentence to life in prison, pleading for clemency ahead of his scheduled Nov. 5 execution. During 64 minutes of questioning at Indiana State Prison in Michigan City, Weisheit apologized for the murders of 8-year-old Alyssa Lynch and her 5-year-old brother, Caleb, but repeatedly struggled to explain why anger at his girlfriend led him to kill the children.
Weisheit described placing a phone book on an electric stove burner, turning it on, and leaving the Evansville home with both children still inside on the night of April 9, 2010. Firefighters found their bodies after responding to the burning home early the next morning. A jury convicted Weisheit of two counts of murder and arson in 2013, recommending a death sentence.
The five-member parole board pressed Weisheit on his account of the killings, his prison disciplinary record, and his reluctance to seek mental health treatment while incarcerated. They repeatedly questioned whether his reported struggles to manage anger, cope with stress, and resolve conflicts could endanger other prisoners or correctional staff if his death sentence were commuted to life without parole.
“There is no excuse or explanation for what I did,” said Weisheit, 50, who appeared with attorney Joseph Perkovich. He told the board he thinks about the children every day and hopes to remain a son, brother, and uncle to relatives who have continued supporting him. Weisheit offered apologies to Lisa Lynch and her family, as well as Steve Lynch and his family.
Weisheit said he had been caring for the children while their mother, Lisa Lynch, worked that night. He described financial strain, disagreements over caring for the children, and his belief that Lisa Lynch had betrayed him, stating he had become consumed with these thoughts in the weeks before the killings. He told the board the children had watched a Disney movie and fallen asleep before he sent them to bed. After speaking with their mother by phone, he said he grew increasingly angry.
He acknowledged binding Caleb with duct tape, putting a rag in his mouth to keep him from screaming, and placing him on his bed. Alyssa remained in her own bed, he said. While Weisheit denied setting the fire during his 2013 trial, he told the board he decided to set the fire just before leaving. Court records also detail preparations he made before the killings, including stopping payments on an engagement ring, telling a jeweler he was leaving the country, quitting his job, and withdrawing his bank account money. He fled to Kentucky, where police apprehended him following a high-speed chase.
Board members also questioned Weisheit about road flares found under and around Caleb’s body. Weisheit acknowledged buying flares and keeping them in the house but denied placing them near the boy, offering no explanation for how they got there. When asked why he did not simply leave the house without harming the children or why he directed his anger toward them rather than their mother, Weisheit said he could not hurt Lisa Lynch because she was pregnant with his child. He repeatedly stated he could not explain his actions, adding, “I don’t understand why I got so mad.” He also denied being under the influence of alcohol or drugs.
In his plea for clemency, Weisheit spoke of a religious conversion and expressed a desire to continue helping others behind bars. “I want to live now,” he said, citing pride in his sanitation duties and efforts to help other prisoners. Board members, including Chairwoman Gwendolyn Horth and Mia Kelsaw, questioned how his statements about his Christian faith aligned with his prison disciplinary record, noting an incident involving fecal matter and others such as possessing a broken squeegee handle and blocking his cell’s lock. Weisheit disputed the circumstances of these incidents, providing explanations such as fears of attacks from other prisoners. He maintained that being around more people in the general population could be better than the isolation of death row.
Board member Kelsaw questioned why Weisheit had spent extensive time discussing his relationship with Lisa Lynch but comparatively little describing the steps he took to kill the children. She also questioned his previous reluctance to use available mental health services in prison, though Weisheit indicated he would now like to speak with someone. He attributed difficulties throughout his life to problems with his brain, describing childhood head injuries, trouble concentrating, and fears about medication. When a board member asked about his bipolar disorder diagnosis, he continued to emphasize his belief that brain damage was the underlying problem. His attorneys are seeking additional brain imaging and a two-week execution delay, contending that evidence of brain injuries, mental illness, and childhood trauma was not adequately developed in earlier proceedings.
Public testimony on Weisheit’s clemency request is scheduled Monday in Indianapolis. The five-member panel will then make a nonbinding recommendation to Gov. Mike Braun, who will ultimately decide whether to spare the inmate’s life.
