Netflix's 'I Just Killed My Dad' Sheds Light On Son's Fight To Clear His Name After Father's Murder
Anthony Templet wants to tell his story.
Netflix Netflix has upped its game in the true crime space, and it looks like it’s achieved another viral hit with “I Just Killed My Dad.”
The new three-part limited series from the creators of “Abducted in Plain Sight” tells the story of Anthony Templet, who was arrested in Baton Rogue, Louisiana, in 2019 at the age of 17 after admitting to shooting and killing his father, Burt, in their home.
The Netflix documentary tells the complex story of the abuse and deception Anthony experienced before this incident.
Where is Anthony Templet now?
Today, Anthony is a free man after Baton Rouge, Louisiana court accepted a plea agreement for negligent homicide.
He is now 20 years old and reportedly still living in Baton Rouge. Anthony is speaking out to share his story in the Netflix documentary.
‘I Just Killed My Dad’ reveals what really happened to Anthony Templet.
Anthony called 911 on June 3, 2019, and reported that he had shot his father. "I just, uh, killed my dad," he tells the 911 operator calmly. “What do I need to tell you?”
When officers arrived, Burt wasn’t dead. He was transported to a local hospital and treated for his injuries. He was removed from life support and died three days later.
Anthony told police the two got into an argument after Burt learned Anthony had been in contact with Susan Templet, Burt’s estranged wife.
Allegedly, Burt, who was drunk at the time, made the verbal argument physical, at which point Anthony tried getting away from him. He escaped from his own bedroom, where the fight started, to Burt’s bedroom.
Anthony said that as he saw Burt escalate in a way he never had before, he felt like “this was it for me.” He grabbed two guns in the room, opened the door, and then shot his father three times.
Investigators would learn that Anthony’s life was more complicated than it seemed.
Anthony had a very unusual upbringing. He grew up raised solely by Burt, who led him to believe his mother was a drug addict who didn’t want anything to do with him.
In reality, Burt and Anthony’s mother, Teresa Thompson, had been in an abusive relationship that she was trying to escape during Anthony’s early years.
Anthony was five years old when Burt got temporary sole custody after accusing Teresa of being an unfit parent.
During a custody exchange, Burt came and hastily took Anthony from Teresa’s home. Little did she know, that was the last time she would see him.
Teresa reported her son missing and had missing posters of Anthony made – these posters would later become one of very few pieces of evidence that proved Anthony was a missing person.
At the time, Anthony had been living with Teresa in Texas, and she couldn’t afford to continue the custody battle in Louisiana, where Burt moved them to make it harder for her to reunite with her son.
Teresa had hoped that once Anthony was old enough to be on social media, she’d be able to find him and reconnect.
Burt’s methodic ways of keeping Anthony from branching out, from homeschooling and isolation to surveillance, kept that from being possible.
Burt Templet was allegedly abusive to Anthony and others in his life.
From accounts of Burt beating Teresa while she was pregnant with Anthony to him allegedly beating Teresa with a young Anthony in his arms, it was clear that his abuse was rampant and a constant in Anthony’s life.
Burt’s second wife, Susan, also shares her own stories of abuse in the documentary.
Susan and her son, Peyton, lived with Burt and Anthony. Peyton was uncomfortable with the abusive environment, ended up having his dad pick him up, and refused to return to the shared household.
This put strain on Susan and her relationship with Burt. An incidence of physical abuse ultimately led to her leaving.
She felt terrible for Anthony, who she had tried to help educate and considered a son, but couldn’t justify staying and feared Burt would come after her if she tried to leave with him.
Today, Anthony Templet is no longer in prison.
Anthony was initially charged with second-degree murder, a charge to which he pled not guilty in August 2019.
As information about his upbringing came to light, his team worked for a more lenient sentence considering the circumstances.
Regarding jail time, Anthony served time from the time of Burt’s death in June 2019 until mid-December that year.
In January 2021, Anthony’s legal team negotiated a deal with the East Baton Rouge District Attorney. He pleaded guilty to negligent homicide and was sentenced to five years probation.
The terms of his probation indicate Anthony must get his GED, go to counseling, and either have a full-time job or be in school full time. Because it isn’t considered a violent crime, his record can be expunged when his probation is completed.
Anthony is completing the terms of his parole and doing his best with his second chance at life. He’s started the process of reconnecting with his mom and members of her family.
In the documentary, he tells filmmakers, “I just want to be normal. Just want to live normally and be happy and just move on.”
Angela Andaloro is a writer who passionately explores all things entertainment, parenting, and true crime. Follow her on Twitter here.