Indiana Man’s Guilty Plea Brings Closure to Murder of Elderly Couple, Sentencing Scheduled for July

A man from southwestern Indiana has pleaded guilty to murder and other crimes in the shooting and robbery of an elderly couple at their home.

Austin Kusturin, 30, of Mount Vernon, guilty to all 11 charges on Wednesday, one day after a jury was selected for his trial in the murders of John and Elizabeth “Betty” Hall, both 74. His sentencing is scheduled for July 18.

Posey County Prosecutor Thomas Clowers stated that the plea agreement with Kusturin relieves the Halls’ relatives of the burden of sitting through a trial where his “heinous and senseless crimes” would be exposed. He stated that Kusturin might face a prison sentence of up to 170 years.

“My office will seek the maximum sentence, which is effectively life in prison,” Clowers said in a statement.

In November 2021, a relative checking on the Halls’ welfare discovered their bodies at their house in Mount Vernon, an Ohio River hamlet west of Evansville. Indiana State Police were able to locate their smartphones near Kusturin’s home. According to an affidavit, a gun belonging to John Hall was discovered in a storage facility Kusturin shared, as well as Kusturin’s thumbprint on John Hall’s phone.

Glenn Grampp, Kusturin’s attorney, said his client informed him that he had decided to plead guilty Wednesday morning before opening statements began. He claimed Kusturin did not elucidate on why.

Grampp stated that, while his client’s guilty plea eliminates the potential of life without parole, Kusturin “is looking at a substantial amount of time” in jail.