The Griffin-Liske family murders: he saw the killer
Devon Griffin stopped home before church and saw only his stepbrother. When he came back, he thought what he found was a Halloween prank.
- When
- Night of October 30–31, 2010; discovered Halloween afternoon
- Where
- Near Martin, Ottawa County, Ohio
- Status
- Convicted
Content note murder, family violence, gun violence, suicide. No graphic images.
In brief
On Halloween morning 2010, Devon Griffin, 16, stopped at his family's home in rural Ottawa County, Ohio, to change for church. The only person he saw was his adult stepbrother, William "B.J." Liske, who had gone hunting with his father the day before and stayed the night. When Devon came back in the early afternoon, he found his mother, Susan Liske, 46, and stepfather, Bill Liske Jr., 53, in their bed. For a moment he thought it was an elaborate Halloween prank. They had been shot. Deputies found his brother, Derek Griffin, 23, upstairs, killed with a claw hammer. B.J. and Bill's truck were gone. Deputies arrested B.J. that afternoon at the family's hunting cabin in Carroll County, about 170 miles away. In August 2011 he pleaded guilty to three counts of aggravated murder and was sentenced to life without parole. He died in prison in 2015.
Turning pointDevon told deputies that the only person he had seen at the house that morning was B.J. By the afternoon, B.J. and his father's truck were at a cabin 170 miles away.
- Victims
- William E. "Billy" Liske Jr., 53; Susan M. Liske, 46; Derek L. Griffin, 23
- Survivor
- Devon Griffin, 16, Susan's younger son
- Convicted
- William J. "B.J." Liske, Bill's adult son and Devon's stepbrother
- Arrested
- Halloween afternoon, at the family's hunting cabin about 170 miles away
- Plea
- Guilty to three counts of aggravated murder, August 2011
- Sentence
- Life without parole; died in prison in 2015
Watch the episode
Griffin-Liske Family Murders: He Saw the Killer
Watch on YouTubeTimeline
October 30, 2010
Bill Liske goes hunting with his adult son, B.J. A small gathering at the family home ends around midnight, and B.J. stays the night.
Night of Oct. 30–31, 2010
According to prosecutors, Derek Griffin is killed upstairs with a claw hammer, and Bill and Susan Liske are then shot in their first-floor bedroom. The exact time was never established.
October 31, 2010About 9:30 a.m.
Devon stops home to change for church. The only person he sees is B.J. He does not see his mother, stepfather or brother.
October 31, 2010Early afternoon
Devon returns from church and finds his mother and stepfather in bed. At first he thinks it is a Halloween prank. Then he realizes they are dead and calls for help through his aunt.
October 31, 2010
Deputies find Derek dead upstairs. B.J. and Bill's white pickup are gone. There is no sign of forced entry.
October 31, 2010Afternoon
Deputies find B.J. and the truck at the family's hunting cabin in Carroll County, about 170 miles away, and arrest him.
March 18, 2011
After his mental health is evaluated, a judge finds B.J. competent to stand trial.
August 12, 2011
Facing a possible death sentence, B.J. pleads guilty to three counts of aggravated murder. The death-penalty specifications and remaining charges are dismissed.
September 14, 2011
Judge Bruce Winters sentences him to three concurrent terms of life without parole.
March 31, 2015
B.J. Liske dies at Ross Correctional Institution of a self-inflicted injury.
The full story
Halloween morning
The day before Halloween 2010, Bill Liske spent the day hunting with his grown son, B.J. That night there was a small gathering at the Liske family home in rural Ottawa County, Ohio, near the village of Martin. It broke up around midnight, and B.J. stayed over.
On Halloween morning, around 9:30, Bill’s 16-year-old stepson, Devon Griffin, stopped at the house to change for church. The only person he saw was B.J. He did not see his mother, his stepfather or his brother, and he had no reason to wonder why.
The prank
When Devon got home in the early afternoon, he found his mother, Susan, and his stepfather, Bill, in their bed. For a few seconds he thought it was an elaborate Halloween setup. Then he understood they were dead. He called for help through his aunt.
Both had been shot. Upstairs, deputies found Devon’s older brother, Derek, 23, killed with a claw hammer. Prosecutors later said Derek died first. There was no sign that anyone had broken in. B.J. was gone, and so was his father’s white pickup.
170 miles
That afternoon, deputies found the truck and B.J. at the family’s hunting cabin in Carroll County, about 170 miles away, and arrested him. He was charged with aggravated murder, and prosecutors sought the death penalty. His lawyers raised his history of mental illness, and in March 2011 a judge found him competent to stand trial.
In August 2011, B.J. Liske pleaded guilty to three counts of aggravated murder in exchange for the death penalty being taken off the table. That September, Judge Bruce Winters sentenced him to life without parole. He died in prison in 2015.
That morning, Devon had walked past the person who had killed his family, without any idea of what had happened in the house.
What the video couldn't include
Who they were
Bill Liske was an Air Force veteran who loved the outdoors. Derek Griffin was 23. Susan Liske, 46, was Devon and Derek's mother and B.J.'s stepmother.
The pond
Investigators drained a pond on the property after finding muddy footprints near its dock. Early reporting said the search turned up no weapon.
No established motive
B.J. had a documented history of mental illness, which his lawyers raised and the court examined before finding him competent. In court he attributed his actions to that struggle. No single motive for the three killings was established.
A plea, not a trial
The case never went to a jury. B.J.'s guilty pleas ended it, with the agreement removing the possibility of a death sentence.
Devon
Devon Griffin lost his mother, his brother and his stepfather on the same day. He later spoke about that morning in an Oxygen documentary series.
The video and the record
The episode tells this case in about 1 minutes with illustrated recreations. Here is how its key moments line up with what is documented.
At nine-thirty, Devon stopped home to change for church. B.J. was the only person he saw
Documented
Contemporary reporting and Devon's later account.
At first, he thought it was an elaborate Halloween prank
Documented
Reported by CBS and WTOL two days after the murders.
Derek had been killed with a claw hammer. Bill and Susan had been shot
Documented
The prosecution's account at sentencing and coroner findings reported by the Sandusky Register.
That afternoon, deputies found both at the family's hunting cabin, 170 miles away
Documented
Carroll County, Ohio.
The morning encounter, the bedroom doorway, the truck
Reconstruction
AI-generated illustrations. No crime-scene or family photographs are reproduced.
What the four marks mean
- Documented
- Shown as it is recorded in court filings, police statements, or consistent reporting.
- Reconstruction
- A reasonable visual recreation of a documented event. The event happened; the image is illustrative.
- Compressed
- Real events shortened, merged, or reordered to fit the runtime.
- Dramatized
- A storytelling choice (framing, wording, emphasis) that the record does not establish.
Sources
- [1]Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and CorrectionOffender details: William J. Liske, A604625Lists three concurrent life sentences for aggravated murder, Ottawa County case 10CR130, and status released, death.
- [2]The Blade (Toledo)“Liske gets life for deaths of 3”
- [3]CBS News, WTOL and the Associated Press“Ohio Triple Murder: Teen Thought it was Halloween Prank”
- [4]Sandusky Register“Tragic timeline: Details surface on Halloween family killings”
- [5]Associated Press, via Fox News“Ohio man pleads guilty to killing 3 family members”
- [6]Associated Press, via The Vindicator“Ohio man competent to stand trial in family deaths”
- [7]The Blade (Toledo)“Man convicted of 2010 triple murder of relatives in Ottawa County dies in prison”
- [8]Oxygen (Homicide for the Holidays)“Ohio Man Targets His Family In 'Real-Life Horror Story On Halloween'”
- [9]The Blade, via Legacy.comWilliam E. Liske Jr. obituary
- [10]The Blade, via Legacy.comDerek L. Griffin obituary
VerifiedKey facts in this file were checked against multiple consistent reports and first-person or official accounts. Last reviewed October 6, 2026. How we check cases
