Inset: Ethan James Graverson. Background: The home in Woodville, Wisconsin, where Graverson allegedly shot his father to death (WLUK).
A young man in Wisconsin, aged 22, allegedly took his father’s life during a heated altercation at their residence, later exhibiting minimal emotion while discussing the incident with law enforcement.
Ethan James Graverson is facing charges of first-degree intentional homicide following the death of his father, whose identity has not been released to the public. According to a probable cause arrest affidavit sourced by Law&Crime, officers from the Calumet County Sheriff’s Office were called to a Woodville home around 12:45 p.m. on a Friday. Graverson had dialed 911, claiming his father was “going crazy” and he had no choice but to shoot him.
Authorities instructed Graverson to lay down his firearm and exit the house for a conversation. Complying, he emerged and confessed to shooting his father. When questioned about the number of shots fired, he allegedly replied, “I don’t know, five, six maybe?” Inside the home, officers found the victim unresponsive, seated upright in a closet with gunshot wounds to his chest and groin. He was declared dead at the scene.
The affidavit noted the presence of five shell casings from a 9 mm firearm scattered on the kitchen floor.
During this time, Graverson’s mother, who is also the deceased’s wife, returned from grocery shopping to find their home surrounded by police vehicles. She explained that her son had been struggling since moving back home after a breakup with his girlfriend about a year prior. She noted his behavior had changed but mentioned nothing unusual on the day of the shooting.
When asked about the relationship between her husband and son, she exclaimed, “Oh my God, did Ethan do something?” She expressed surprise, stating there were no known ongoing conflicts between them.
Graverson was taken to the sheriff’s office. Deputies noted that as he waited to be interviewed, Graverson “made a smirk and a small chuckle.”
“Ethan did not make any other type of emotion,” deputies wrote.
During an interview after receiving his Miranda rights, Graverson told deputies about his day and the moments leading up to the shooting. He allegedly said he got done with work around noon and came home to find his father drinking.
“Ethan said [his father] told him that he loves him and to calm down, and by the end of it, he was threatening to fight him,” the affidavit stated.
The suspect said he felt like his father was being condescending toward him and the two started to argue. Asked what they were arguing about, Graverson said, “just life in general,” the affidavit stated. He said he grabbed a gun from the garage.
“It wasn’t the first time I’ve grabbed the gun; it was the first time I used the gun,” he allegedly said.
Investigators asked why he grabbed the gun and Graverson reportedly said he came to the realization that his dad was a “monster.” Officials then tried to establish a timeline between when Graverson got home from work and when he allegedly shot his dad, noting that it didn’t seem like much time had passed.
“There’s been a lot of buildup and I didn’t think it needed a whole lot of time,” he allegedly said.
He stated his father said he was acting crazy.
“Ethan said he had enough of that,” cops wrote.
Graverson said his dad tried to convince him to put down the gun and give him a hug. When that didn’t work, Graverson said his dad wanted him to drop the weapon so they could fight “man to man.”
It was at this point that Graverson allegedly fired the first shot. He claimed he was in fear for his life and aimed for the center mass. He said his dad reached forward, so he fired several more times.
“Six to seven maybe, it wasn’t a full mag,” Graverson allegedly told deputies when asked how many times he fired.
The defendant said he had been thinking of killing his dad since he was 10 or 11 but admitted his father told him he loved him his whole life.
Detectives then told him his father was dead.
“I don’t know how to react to that,” he said, per the affidavit.
Graverson is in the Calumet County Jail on a $1 million bond.
