MANCHESTER, N.H. (Court TV) — A New Hampshire man was convicted of murdering the mother of his children, despite his claims that he acted in self-defense.
Dustin Duren testified in his own defense on Oct. 24, 2025. (Court TV)
Dustin Duren, 38, was found guilty on charges of second-degree murder, reckless conduct with a deadly weapon and child endangerment in the death of Caitlyn Naffziger, 31, who was shot to death on Feb. 29, 2024.
Police issued an Amber Alert for the couple’s children after Naffziger was found dead in an apartment near Berlin, testimony revealed. The two girls were found unharmed with Duren after his car was spotted in an Applebee’s parking lot approximately 170 miles away.
Duren testified he acted in self-defense when he shot Naffziger because she was trying to kidnap their children. Duren also testified he’s a Marine veteran who suffers from PTSD.
DAILY TRIAL UPDATES
DAY 6 – 10/28/25
- LIVESTREAM: NH v. Dustin Duren – Day 6 | Amber Alert Murder Trial
- Dustin Duren’s defense delivered its closing argument to the jury.
- Duren acted in defense of his daughter, Elowyn, to prevent a kidnapping; Naffziger had previously kidnapped Vaelyn in Las Vegas.
- WATCH: Defense: Father Dustin Duren’s ‘Unyielding Love’ Led to Deadly Shooting
- Naffziger had a secret plan to take the children from New Hampshire to Minnesota.
- Naffziger was holding Elowyn “hostage” and demanding money or else she would take the kids.
- Duren’s Marine training kicked in when he perceived the threat to his daughter.
- He fired one shot after chambering a round and pulled Elowyn away.
- Accused the state of misrepresenting Duren’s statements to police.
- Prosecutors delivered closing arguments to the jury.
- Prosecutors said Duren killed Naffziger out of anger and a need for control, and changed his story between his statement to police and his testimony at trial.
- WATCH: State: Dustin Duren Has ‘Tried To Blame Caitlyn Naffziger for Her Death’
- Naffziger was unarmed, sitting on a couch wrapped in a blanket, when shot.
- Duren fled the scene, packed clothes and drove through the night, giving him 16 hours to craft a story before speaking with the police.
- Duren never mentioned kidnapping or self-defense in his original police statement; the first claims were made at his first trial, a year and a half after the shooting.
- Naffziger had equal rights to her own child, and there is no evidence she was planning to kidnap anyone; she also had no means to flee.
- The jury began its deliberations.
- The jury reached a verdict after approximately two and a half hours of deliberations.
DAY 5 – 10/27/25
- LIVESTREAM: NH v. Dustin Duren – Day 5 | Amber Alert Murder Trial
- Dustin Duren returned to the stand to continue testifying.
- Duren addressed the events of Feb. 29, saying that after lunch, he repeatedly asked Naffziger about her travel plans and whether Brenda would be picking her up, but she ignored him. He became frustrated and told her that she needed to leave.
- Naffziger allegedly grabbed Elowyn and sat on the couch, holding her with her arm around the child’s chest. When Duren tried to take Elowyn, he said Naffziger pulled the child back and refused to let go.
- Duren said Naffziger began making financial threats and said that Duren would never see the kids again; she threatened to call the police and say that Duren kidnapped Elowyn from Minnesota.
- Duren said that, using the Marine color code system, his mind went from “yellow” (alert) to “orange” (potential threat) to “red” (immediate danger).
- Duren said he tried a final time to grab Elowyn, but Naffziger squeezed the child, causing Elowyn to scream because she was being hurt.
- At that point, Duren retrieved his gun, chambered a round and fired at Naffziger’s head. He described the sequence as lasting three to five seconds and said it was “muscle memory.”
- Immediately grabbed Elowyn and ran to the car. He checked the child for injuries but found none; Elowyn did complain that it was “loud.”
- During cross-examination, Duren conceded that he was bigger and stronger than Naffziger and had martial arts training.
- Naffziger had no weapons, and Duren confirmed he knew the gunshot would kill her.
- Duren acknowledged he fled the scene and “went dark” to avoid being found; he never checked if Naffziger was live or needed medical assistance.
- MORE: Amber Alert Murder Trial: Defendant Dustin Duren Faces Cross-Examination
- The defense rested its case.
- The defense moved for the judge to dismiss the charges; the judge denied the motion.
DAY 4 – 10/24/25
- LIVESTREAM: NH v. Dustin Duren – Day 4 | Amber Alert Murder Trial
- Det. Sgt. Michael McLaughlin returned for cross-examination.
- Duren said the shooting was his training coming out.
- Prosecutors rested their case-in-chief.
- The defense made a motion for a judgment of acquittal on all charges, saying Duren was justified when he shot the victim.
- The judge denied the motion.
- The defense called Brenda Plamondon, Naffziger’s aunt, to the stand.
- Naffziger reached out in early 2024 about a visit, but didn’t offer much detail. Reached out again in February saying she was coming to New Hampshire.
- Naffziger’s plan was to get Elowyn and then take both children to Minnesota, if she didn’t hear from Naffziger, Plamondon was to take them and the girls back to Minnesota as quickly as possible. There was a code word as part of the plan.
- If she heard the code word, she was to drive 2.5 hours and call 911. The plan was to leave without Dustin knowing.
- Drove Naffziger and Vaelyn to the designated meeting spot; she brought a suitcase and a bag of wet laundry. She left behind a backpack.
- Never heard from Naffziger again; the victim said she couldn’t text because the defendant controlled her phone.
- The plan was not to harm either child or to seek money; The plan was not to have Naffziger take custody of the children.
- Defendant did not know about the plan or code word.
- Defendant Dustin Duren took the stand in his own defense.
- MORE: Dustin Duren details PTSD, custody fears in murder trial testimony
- Duren talked about his life and military service; he enlisted in the Marines out of high school and served deployments to Japan, the Philippines, Thailand, Iraq and Kuwait. He was honorably discharged as a Sergeant in 2011 and was diagnosed with service-related PTSD in 2021-2022.
- His mental health deteriorated in 2018, and he attempted suicide.
- Met Caitlyn Naffziger in 2019 and began dating. She became pregnant in April 2019 and Elowyn was born Dec. 2, 2019.
- He taught Naffziger to shoot a pistol for safety, and experienced multiple safety incidents including someone trying to break into the house.
- Naffziger suggested moving to New Hampshire, where her aunt lived. They planned to move in August 2023 when their lease expired.
- The couple ordered Pods for the move, but when the wrong ones arrived, it revealed that Naffziger had planned to go to Minnesota instead.
- Naffziger left with baby Vaelyn for the airport without telling Duren, and then convinced him to move to Minnesota to work things out.
- Once in Minnesota, the couple lived separately and shared custody.
- In October 2023, Naffziger agreed to continue the move; Duren would drive with Elowyn and Naffziger would fly with Vaelyn.
- During a fight in Feb. 2024 about money and taxes, Naffziger threatened to claim that Duren kidnapped Elowyn and threatened to call the police and have the girls taken away.
- WATCH: Amber Alert Murder Trial: Dustin Duren Takes Stand
DAY 3 – 10/23/25
- LIVESTREAM: NH v. Dustin Duren – Day 3 | Amber Alert Murder Trial
- Deputy Chief Medical Examiner Dr. Mitchell Weinberg conducted the autopsy on Caitlyn Naffziger.
- Two obvious defects were found in her head, identified as gunshot wounds. One was an entry wound, the other an exit wound.
- The bullet entered on the left side of her head above the ear and passed through the skull and brain before exiting above the right ear.
- Cause of death was gunshot wound to the head; manner of death was homicide.
- No markers of close-range firing were present (no soot, muzzle imprints or gunpowder stippling), in his opinion it was fired from three feet or more away.
- No other injuries or trauma, no significant toxicology findings.
- NH State Police Det. Sgt. Michael McLaughlin heard radio commotion about the Amber Alert vehicle and drove to the Applebee’s where the defendant was arrested.
- Introduced himself to Duren at the scene.
- WATCH: Detective Details Taking Defendant Dustin Duren Into Custody
- Conducted a formal interview with Duren later that day.
- Duren signed a miranda waiver; McLaughlin formed the opinion that he was ready to talk about what happened.
- Described Duren as “talkative” that afternoon, he had questions about the children.
- Duren admitted to shooting and killing Naffziger, and said he used his right hand to fire the gun.
- When asked if the victim was threatening him or his daughter, Duren said “no” and said the shooting was done “deliberately.”
- Described the bullet as going in one side of her head and out the other.
- Duren said he had pulled his daughter away from the victim and was holding her when he fired; he tried to shield his daughter from seeing.
- After shooting Naffziger, Duren knew he was “screwed” and talked about wanting to spend time with the kids before turning himself in or going to police.
- The jury saw the recorded police interview McLaughlin did with Duren.
- During the recorded interview, Duren said that Naffziger took their 1-year-old without his knowledge and kept asking for more money from him while threatening to take the kids away and have him arrested.
- At the end of the video, Duren appeared emotional both in the video and in the courtroom, putting his head down on the table.
DAY 2 – 10/21/25
- LIVESTREAM: NH v. Dustin Duren – Day 2 | Amber Alert Murder Trial
- NH State Police intelligence analyst Tracey Flaherty testified.
- Flaherty analyzed cell phone data that showed Duren’s movements after the shooting.
- Carolyn Campbell called 911 after spotting Duren’s vehicle during the Amber Alert.
- Campbell, a former police dispatcher from Las Vegas, was woken by the Amber Alert that morning. She was driving to her daughter’s house in Keene, New Hampshire, when she spotted Duren’s Subaru.
- Campbell called 911 while following the vehicle until reaching an Applebee’s parking lot. She remained on the phone until the police arrived.
- Keene Police Officer Joel Velez was the officer who arrested Duren.
- Velez described Duren as compliant. He exited the vehicle and was handcuffed without incident.
- Duren told officers that his kids were in the car and there was a pistol in the car door.
- Two children were removed from the car’s backseat; the infant was not strapped in and had an overflowing diaper, the child appeared terrified.
- The jury was shown body camera footage of the arrest.
- Emergency room Dr. Natalie Robertson treated Duren’s daughters, who were brought in by police after his arrest.
- The four-year-old patient initially had no complaints, then said her ear hurt.
- She told the doctor that her daddy “hurt mom and me” and there was a lot of blood. When asked where she was hurt, the child said she didn’t know. No other injuries were found; she was diagnosed as having an ear injury due to being in close proximity to a loud noise.
- Robertson conceded there was no evidence of a perforated eardrum or further trauma to the ear, and the child appeared well-kept and well-nourished.
- NH State Police Trooper Nicholas Post processed and documented Duren’s 2017 Subaru following his arrest.
- Inside the car, investigators found a pillow, blanket, fruit cups, adult pajama pants, a diary, paper towels, a water bottle, cleaning wipes, children’s clothing, a desktop computer tower, a Baretta handgun with a magazine and a spent 9mm cartridge.
- NH State Police firearm and toolmark examiner Jill Therriault examined the Beretta handgun and conducted tests on it.
- Testing showed the weapon was not susceptible to “jar-off” discharge.
- The bullet in question was fired from the Beretta pistol.
DAY 1 – 10/20/25
- LIVESTREAM: NH v. Dustin Duren – Day 1 | Amber Alert Murder Trial
- Senior Asst. Attorney General Joshua Speicher delivered the opening statement for the State.
- Speicher described the defendant ripping his child from the victim’s arms and shooting her before taking the children.
- The defendant allegedly called his parents after killing Caitlyn and told them what he’d done and said he was “going dark.”
- Duren’s father called the police, who went to the apartment and found the victim’s body.
- An Amber Alert was issued, leading to Duren’s arrest. He told officers that he wanted Caitlyn to leave his apartment but when she wouldn’t, he got angry.
- Speicher described the case as one about “anger and control.”
- Duren’s defense attorney, Hanna Kinne, delivered an opening statement.
- Kinne described the case as one about broken promises, “secret plans” and a father’s love for his children.
- Duren, a marine veteran, was responding to a threat when he shot and killed Caitlyn — he saw his daughter being held hostage in front of him and felt she was in danger.
- Duren’s actions were justified based on the circumstances.
- Caitlyn had planned to take the couple’s two children in the middle of the night while he was sleeping; his attorney said that Caitlyn threatened to never let Duren see his children again.
- Duren, a Marine, had been diagnosed with service-connected PTSD and had suffered depression in the past.
- WATCH: Defense: Duren was ‘Reacting To A Threat Towards His Beloved Daughter’
- Berlin Det. Sgt. Eric Benjamin testified.
- Benjamin described finding Caitlyn’s body in the living room of the apartment with a gunshot wound to the head. Her body was cold, and the appearance of her skin indicated she had been there for some time.
- Benjamin noticed a single shell casing to the right of the couch in the living room.
- The defendant’s father, Mark Duren, testified.
- Mark said he called the Berlin Police Department after Dustin called to say that Caitlyn had been shot.
- Mark previously worked for the sheriff’s office; when he retired, he gave his Beretta 9mm to Dustin and another gun to his other son.
- NH State Police Det. Amanda Johnson was the officer-in-charge at the crime scene and testified to her role in the investigation.
- The first priority was locating the children and the defendant.
- The jury was shown crime scene photos.
Portions of this story were reported by a journalist and have been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
