Man Admits Beating Father to Death Decades After ‘First Body’ Boast

A New Hampshire man could spend up to 24 years behind bars after pleading guilty to killing his father more than two decades ago.

Douglas Herlihy, now 40, acknowledged killing his father when he was 17, according to the New Hampshire Department of Justice.

The father-son relationship had been marked by conflict, including earlier violence and repeated contact with law enforcement before the killing.

Paul Herlihy, 50, was discovered on Aug. 27, 2003, after a relative requested a welfare check.

Officers entered Paul Herlihy’s Milford, New Hampshire, home through a window and immediately encountered “hundreds of flies and the strong odor of decomposition,” according to court records.

They found his body on the kitchen floor, wrapped in carpet and covered by a blue tarp. Blood spatters appeared on the kitchen cabinets, refrigerator, walls and ceiling.

An autopsy classified the death as a homicide caused by blunt-force trauma inflicted within the previous four days.

The medical examiner documented injuries to Paul Herlihy’s nose and jaw, skull fractures and damage to his voice box. Investigators said he had been struck repeatedly in the head.

Police later found bloodstained carpet and padding in the backyard, directly beneath Douglas Herlihy’s bedroom window. Investigators determined the materials had been pushed through the open window. DNA testing indicated the blood could have belonged to Paul Herlihy.

In Douglas Herlihy’s bedroom, investigators found a towel covering the closet door. Beneath it was a message written in large letters: “I WILL SEE YOU IN HELL,” an arrest affidavit stated.

The person responsible for the killing was never identified at the time.

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‘I beat my first body when I was 17’

In the years that followed, Douglas Herlihy repeatedly encountered the law, including cases involving drugs and a stolen vehicle. During a 2020 arrest, he told an officer he expected the court to “throw out the charges.”

“That’s what I do. I beat cases. I beat my first body when I was 17!” he said, according to the arrest affidavit.

The officer said he understood the remark to mean that Herlihy had killed people in the past.

Despite the comment, court records show that Herlihy repeatedly denied to relatives that he had any role in his father’s death.

When investigators questioned him in 2010 about the killing, Herlihy directed them to his attorney.

After the investigation produced new findings, authorities obtained an arrest warrant for Herlihy in June 2025. He was arrested in Saugus, Massachusetts, and later extradited to New Hampshire.

Herlihy was charged with two counts of second-degree murder and one count of falsifying physical evidence.

He negotiated a plea agreement for 12 to 24 years in the New Hampshire State Prison on a manslaughter charge. The agreement also suspends for 20 years a potential sentence of 3 ½ to 7 years for attempting to falsify evidence.

“This case is a reminder that the pursuit of justice does not end with the passage of time,” said New Hampshire Attorney General John M. Formella.

“The New Hampshire Cold Case Unit and our law enforcement partners remain committed to pursuing answers and accountability, even decades after a crime. That work takes persistence, patience and a determination to follow the evidence wherever it leads. I commend the investigators and prosecutors whose continued efforts brought this case to an important resolution.”

A sentencing hearing will be scheduled for a date in early 2027.

The Herlihy family said they wanted to maintain their privacy and did not wish to speak with the media according to the New Hampshire Department of Justice Cold Case Unit.

Herlihy’s attorney could not immediately be reached for comment.