Brian Erickstad is currently incarcerated at the North Dakota State Penitentiary in Bismarck, where he has been held since his conviction for the 1998 murders of his adoptive parents. His case is active again: in July 2025, the North Dakota Supreme Court ordered a Burleigh County judge to conduct new sentencing proceedings after finding the district court had amended his sentence without giving him notice. No resentencing date has been set.1KFYR-TV. North Dakota Supreme Court: Man Convicted in ’98 Killing of Adoptive Parents to Be Resentenced2North Dakota DOCR. Offender Details – Brian John Erickstad
Why He’s in Prison
On September 16, 1998, Erickstad and an accomplice, Robert Lawrence, killed Gordon and Barbara Erickstad at the couple’s home in Bismarck. Both victims were stabbed multiple times, and their bodies were found two days later in a wooded area near Selfridge, North Dakota. Erickstad was 18. Gordon and Barbara were his adoptive parents.3FindLaw. State v. Erickstad, 2000 ND 2024KFYR-TV. Brian Erickstad Asks to Be Paroled Earlier Due to Sentencing Error
A Burleigh County jury convicted him on all counts in October 1999: two counts of class AA felony murder, one count of class AA felony conspiracy to commit murder, one count of class B felony theft, and two counts of class C felony theft. In 2000, Judge Burt Riskedahl sentenced him to life in prison with the possibility of parole on the murder charges, plus ten consecutive years on the theft charges.5FindLaw. State v. Erickstad, No. 20240300 (ND Supreme Court) Lawrence was also convicted and sentenced to life with the possibility of parole.4KFYR-TV. Brian Erickstad Asks to Be Paroled Earlier Due to Sentencing Error
Why He’s Being Resentenced
At the 2000 hearing, Judge Riskedahl reportedly indicated Erickstad would be eligible for parole in his 50s.4KFYR-TV. Brian Erickstad Asks to Be Paroled Earlier Due to Sentencing Error Under North Dakota law, offenders convicted of violent crimes and sentenced to life with parole must serve 85% of their life expectancy before becoming eligible.6North Dakota DOCR. Mandatory Prison Terms – Senate In May 2022, the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation asked the district court to amend Erickstad’s judgment to include that life expectancy calculation. The court did so, pushing his first parole hearing to 2059, when he would be 79.7KX News. ND Supreme Court Rules in Favor of Brian Erickstad in Recent Opinion on Murder Sentence
Erickstad was never told. In May 2024, he filed a motion to correct an illegal sentence under North Dakota Rule of Criminal Procedure 35, arguing due process, ex post facto, and retroactivity problems with the amendment. A Burleigh County judge denied the motion.8FindLaw. State v. Erickstad, 2025 ND 1384KFYR-TV. Brian Erickstad Asks to Be Paroled Earlier Due to Sentencing Error
On July 31, 2025, the North Dakota Supreme Court reversed. In an opinion by Justice Daniel Crothers, the court held that the district court abused its discretion by amending the sentence without notice and an opportunity to be heard. The ruling was narrow. Because the notice failure resolved the case, the justices did not reach the ex post facto question or the challenge to the administrative rule used to calculate life expectancy. The murder conviction was not disturbed; only the sentencing proceedings were sent back.9North Dakota Courts. New Opinions – July 318FindLaw. State v. Erickstad, 2025 ND 1381KFYR-TV. North Dakota Supreme Court: Man Convicted in ’98 Killing of Adoptive Parents to Be Resentenced
What Happens Next
Erickstad remains at the North Dakota State Penitentiary, 3100 East Railroad Avenue, Bismarck. Department of Corrections records list his estimated release date as January 1, 2100, a figure that reflects the pre-amendment life sentence and may change with resentencing. An initial parole review is scheduled for March 2049, one month after his currently calculated parole eligibility date.2North Dakota DOCR. Offender Details – Brian John Erickstad7KX News. ND Supreme Court Rules in Favor of Brian Erickstad in Recent Opinion on Murder Sentence
No resentencing date has been scheduled. Erickstad’s attorney, Kiara Kraus-Parr, said after the Supreme Court decision that the next step is up to the Burleigh County State’s Attorney’s office, led by Julie Lawyer, which will need to file a motion articulating what it believes was wrong with the original sentence before new proceedings can go forward.7KX News. ND Supreme Court Rules in Favor of Brian Erickstad in Recent Opinion on Murder Sentence The ex post facto and retroactivity questions the Supreme Court declined to answer remain open for the district court to consider on remand.