New Hampshire Teen Pleads Guilty in 2022 Triple Family Shooting

Eric Sweeney, 19, pleaded guilty in Merrimack County Superior Court on Friday to three counts of reckless second-degree murder for fatally shooting his sister-in-law, 25-year-old Kassandra Sweeney, and his nephews, four-year-old Benjamin and 23-month-old Mason, at the family’s Northfield, New Hampshire, home on 3 Aug 2022. He also admitted to a charge of falsifying physical evidence for removing the .40-caliber handgun used in the killings. Sweeney was 17 at the time of the shootings and had been living with his older brother, Sean Sweeney, the victims’ husband and father. Prosecutors said growing behavioral problems had strained relations in the household, and the teenager was due to face trial next month on first-degree murder charges before accepting the plea to the lesser offenses. Under the agreement, Sweeney must have no contact with his brother or the victims’ extended family, may not profit from the crimes, and will pay restitution. He faces up to life in prison when he is sentenced on 3 October.