‘I Just Killed My Dad’: Where Is Anthony Templet Now?

I Just Killed My Dad, Netflix‘s latest true crime docuseries, revolves around 10 chilling words. In June of 2019, Anthony Templet called the police and said, “I just killed my dad. I shot him three times.” What started as a murder case uncovered a history of kidnapping and abuse in this rare true crime story where justice was served. Here’s your bare bones guide to Anthony Templet’s case, Burt Templet’s murder, and where Anthony is today.

Who Is Anthony Templet?

When Anthony Templet was originally arrested in the summer of 2019 for the murder of his father, it seemed like a cut-and-dry case. After Anthony shot Burt Templet three times, he called the police and confessed to the crime. The 17-year-old was then arrested shortly after his phone call. What no one expected was how twisting and disturbing this case would become.

It was actually Anthony’s arrest that exposed the full extent of abuse he had suffered throughout his life. Once the story was publicized, Anthony’s sister recognized him and revealed that Anthony had been kidnapped by Burt 11 years ago. At the time, Anthony was only five years old. In the Netflix’s docuseries, his biological mother, Teresa Thompson, revealed she tried to find her son repeatedly after he was taken from her, but a lack of financial resources, help from the legal system, and Burt himself thwarted her attempts.

Anthony’s life with his father was just as upsetting as how he came to be there. As a child, Anthony was forbidden from attending school for fear that someone would recognize him as a kidnapping victim. As a result, his education was well below what it should have been, and he was clueless about basic cultural touchstones. At age 16, he was roughly at a third or fourth grade education level, and one subject of the docuseries mentions that Anthony didn’t know who Tom Cruise was. Burt was also verbally abusive to his son and would religiously keep track of where he was using surveillance cameras.

Anthony was always cold toward his father. But for most of his time in Louisiana he had someone to care for him thanks to his stepmother, Susan Templet. Even that small comfort didn’t last long. In March of 2019, Susan left Burt after he physically assaulted her. She did not bring Anthony with her for fear that if she did, Burt would follow them. That left Anthony alone with his father. Later, Anthony claimed that his plan was to shoot Burt simply to harm him. He hoped that the cops would arrive, Anthony would say he attacked out of self-defense, and the authorities would help him find a way out of Burt’s control. Instead, those gunshots killed Burt, drastically changing Anthony’s case.

Did Anthony Templet Go to Prison?

Anthony did spend some time in prison, but it wasn’t long. He was arrested shortly after the police arrived on the scene in June of 2019. By mid-December of that same year, Templet was released from prison. For his crimes, Anthony was originally charged with second-degree murder, but those charges were reduced to manslaughter following the trial.

Where Is Anthony Templet Today?

In 2021, Anthony pled no contest to negligible homicide. He is currently serving five years of supervised probation while also receiving credit for time served. As part of this sentencing, Anthony must get his GED, go to counseling, and either have a full-time job or be in school full time. After his time is served, Anthony will have the option to expunge the charges from his record.

“I have a strong want and desire for Anthony to be successful in life. He lived an incredibly hopeless life, and no one got involved to help him until he shot his father. And that act, unbelievably, has brought all this care and concern into his life,” Anthony’s lawyer, Jarrett Ambeau, says at the end of the docuseries. “At the end of the day, the system came through for this kid.”

Since being on probation, Anthony has reconnected with his mom and that side of the family. I Just Killed My Dad even shows Anthony Templet in the months after his freedom. As old interview footage of him plays, saying that he just wants to lead a normal life, an older version of Anthony tries to fight back tears. When asked if he thinks he can lead a normal life, the past version of himself pauses before saying, “Yes.”