Criminal case ends, for now, against Lansing area man accused of killing his family
CHARLOTTE — The criminal case against a man accused of murdering three family members in 2021 is over, at least for now.
Prosecutors this month dismissed murder and weapon charges against Daniel James Sougstad, 25, after state examiners had repeatedly found him incompetent to stand trial. They petitioned him into Eaton County Probate Court for mental health treatment, and the charges could be refiled if Sougstad is restored to competency.
"It's a tremendously sad case, all the way around," Chief Assistant Eaton County Prosecutor Chris Anderson said. "At this point, we can only wait and see if or when there comes a point he could be restored to competency and we could pursue the charges again."
Sougstad was accused of killing his parents, John and Barbara Sougstad, and his brother, Ryan at the family's home on Bishop Highway in Windsor Township on Sept. 24, 2021. All three victims suffered shotgun wounds and two of them also had knife wounds, authorities said.
Daniel Sougstad was arrested early on Sept. 25 after heading toward the Upper Peninsula and turning around to come back south, authorities said at the time.
Sougstad, who previously had been hospitalized for mental health treatment, initially was found competent to stand trial and sat through a preliminary examination in January 2022. But after the case moved to circuit court, the state Center for Forensic Psychiatry has repeatedly found him unable to assist in his own defense.
Prosecutors had no choice but to dismiss the charges and commit Sougstad for treatment because he could not be restored to competency within 15 months, Anderson said.
After the last review, the forensic center in August said it was unlikely Sougstad could be restored to competency by the end of that period. The prosecutor's office waited until Sougstand had been civilly committed for treatment before dismissing the charges earlier this month, Anderson said.
Sougstad will be kept in a secure setting, and it's extremely unlikely he would be released without the prosecutor's office being notified ahead of time, he said.
Sougstad still hasn't been evaluated for criminal responsiblility in connection with the killings, Anderson said. That would have to happen before Sougstad could be prosecuted, even if he is eventually found competent to stand trial, he said.
More than three years before the Windsor Township killings, Sougstad was hospitalized after expressing suicidal thoughts and paranoia about his family and friends plotting against him, according to court records.
Psychiatrists who examined him in early 2018 concluded he needed to be hospitalized to protect himself and others, according to records in Eaton County Probate Court. Sougstad spent a few days in a hospital before being released to undergo alternative treatment, the documents show.
Contact Ken Palmer at kpalmer@lsj.com. Follow him on Twitter @KBPalm_lsj.
This article originally appeared on Lansing State Journal: Charges dismissed against Lansing area man accused of killing his family
