GRAND HAVEN, Mich. (Court TV) — A Michigan woman pleaded guilty to charges she tortured and murdered her teenage son, avoiding a trial.
Katie Lee appears in court to plead guilty to multiple charges in the death of her son. (Court TV)
Katie Austin Lee, 40, pleaded guilty to second-degree murder, torture and resisting and obstructing officers in the death of her son, Austin Dean Pikaart, who was found dead in their home.
Under the terms of the agreement, Lee will serve between 60 and 90 years in prison. Prosecutors dropped the charge of first-degree murder under the agreement, which would have carried a life sentence had she been convicted.
Officers from the Holland Police Department were called to Lee’s home early in the morning of Feb. 21, 2025, for a report of a domestic incident. When officers went into the home, they were confronted by a woman, later identified as Lee, who they said was holding a knife.
Lee quietly responded “yes” as the judge walked through each element of the crime at her hearing. First, Lee confirmed that she administered a sedative to her son, making him “unable to have control over his body.” Then, she administered a “mind-altering drug” before getting a knife. She then used the knife to cut his arm twice before killing him by slicing his throat. Lee cried as she admitted to the murder.
In a 911 call obtained by WZZM, Lee can allegedly be heard asking for an officer to come to her home because her “son won’t stop breathing.” When asked for clarification, Lee told the dispatcher that things “got way out of hand” and she “couldn’t get him to stop breathing like he made me promise to do.”
Lee allegedly told dispatchers that her son had wanted to die and asked for her help because he “did not want to turn 18,” WOOD reported.
Lee told the judge that she did not want to pursue an insanity defense; her attorneys confirmed that she was deemed competent following an exam after her arrest.
The judge scheduled sentencing for January 19, 2026.
