Michael Shane Halstead and Karen Tysinger Halstead (Henry County Sheriff’s Office)
The parents of a disabled 19-year-old in Alabama whose body was found “severely decomposed” inside of a freezer behind the home they had recently moved out of have now been charged in connection with his death. Michael Shane Halstead, 44, and Karen Tysinger Halstead, 43, are now charged with one count each of reckless manslaughter in the death of Logan Halstead, authorities confirmed to Law&Crime.
Reckless manslaughter in Alabama is a Class B felony that carries a maximum penalty of 20 years in a state correctional facility. The duo had initially been taken into custody on Oct. 29 and charged with one count each of abuse of a corpse, a Class C felony that carries a maximum punishment of 10 years in prison.
The Birmingham News reported that Logan Halstead lived with spina bifida and several other conditions since his birth. Spina bifida is a neural tube defect wherein “the backbone that protects the spinal cord doesn’t form and close as it should” often resulting in “damage to the spinal cord and nerves,” according to the CDC.
According to a copy of the charging document obtained by Dothan, Alabama, ABC affiliate WDHN, the new charges brought against Michael and Karen Halstead accuse them of “recklessly and constantly disregarding treatment for Logan Halstead which resulted in his death.”
As Henry County Sheriff Eric Blankenship previously told Law&Crime, authorities picked up Michael and Karen Halstead on the abuse of corpse charge soon after the discovery of Logan Halstead’s body knowing that additional charges against the parents were very likely.
According to a press release from the Sheriff’s Office, deputies at about 11:37 a.m. on Oct. 29 responded to a home located in the 200 block of Bradford Drive after a caller told the emergency dispatcher that they had just found a dead body on the property.
Upon arriving at the scene, first responders located a “severely decomposed body” inside an overturned freezer that had been left in the backyard of the home. Authorities initially said that the remains had tentatively been identified as being 19-year-old Logan Michael Halstead.
“This incident is a very tragic situation and our agency is committed to finding out the truth,” Sheriff Blankenship said in a statement released after the arrests. “The investigation is still ongoing and information will continue to be released as the case progresses.”
Several hours after the discovery of the body, authorities located Michael and Karen Halstead. The couple were in Jack, Alabama, which is about 50 miles west of the home where their son’s body was found. They were both transported back to Henry County, where they were interviewed by detectives and booked into Henry County Jail.
Authorities believe Logan’s body had been in the freezer from about late July to early August.
Michael and Karen Halstead had allegedly been renting the house but moved away without paying rent sometime after August 2023. The individual who had been the Halstead’s landlord later sold the home to its current owners who discovered the body in the overturned freezer while cleaning their newly acquired property.
Per Birmingham News, the new owners found the freezer, but it was too heavy to load onto their trailer. Instead, they decided to try and clean out the contents before moving it. However, when they opened up the freezer, they quickly noticed a human hand and called 911.
The Halsteads are scheduled to appear in court for their arraignment on Dec. 4.
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