A 22-year-old Hixson man who cut up his parents with a chainsaw after shooting them entered guilty pleas on Monday to first-degree murder.
Phillip Badowski was given life in prison without the possibility of parole on the two murder convictions.
Badowski appeared before Criminal Court Judge Doug Meyer with his brother, Russell, and sister, Jennifer, nearby in the courtroom.
Badowski earlier confessed to killing both his parents, 47-year-old Chester A. Badowski Jr. and 46-year-old Christine Badowski.
Phillip Badowski first told police he had taken his parents to the airport. After the bodies were found in the bathroom of the upscale home at 6409 Fox Den Lane, he later changed his story.
Badowski first cut up his mother with a chainsaw and was in the process of cutting up his father when police arrived. He allegedly was going to put the dismembered bodies in some sort of container. The chain on the saw used by the son finally broke.
He had some candles burning near where the bodies were found.
Badowski also entered guilty pleas to two counts of abuse of a corpse. He got a year each on those cases.
District Attorney Bill Cox said he had gotten into it with his parents after they returned home from a church missions trip and found he had had a party and trashed the house.
Badowski had faced a hearing on revoking probation for an earlier conviction on possession of drug paraphernalia. He has also had charges of driving without a license, driving on a revoked license, speeding, running a stop sign, and operating a boat without a license.
After the Badowski couple did not show up on their jobs, co-workers went to the home to check on the well-being of the residents.
A concerned neighbor came to the officers and said she had a key if they needed in. The officers knocked on the door several times and got no response. They also noticed that both of the Badowskis' cars were parked in the driveway.
The decision was made to make entry. Once they did so Phillip Badowski met them coming from the upstairs portion of the house.
Badowski told the officers that there was not anyone else at home and that his parents had gone out of town for a funeral. The officers asked if they could look around because they could smell smoke coming from upstairs. Badowski told them that would be fine. When the officers went upstairs, they discovered the two bodies.
Badowski was a student at Chattanooga State. He graduated from Hixson High in 2000.
Mrs. Badowski was a nurse at Memorial Hospital's Harrison Medical Center, and Mr. Badowski was director of engineering at Alstom Power.
The state had been considering asking for the death penalty, but had not yet announced a decision.