DUXBURY, MA – A Massachusetts court is now the stage for the trial of a 22-year-old man charged with the murder of his father, following a chilling incident in 2021 where he believed he was performing a baptism to rid his father of demonic possession.

Jack Callahan faces a jury after prosecutors assert he drowned his 57-year-old father, Scott Callahan, a high-ranking bank executive, in a local pond. The case hinges on Callahan’s mental state at the time of the incident, as he contended that his father, who he claimed was battling alcoholism, required a form of spiritual intervention.

The events unfolded after Callahan collected his father from a bar, suspecting he had been drinking. Instead of returning directly home, the duo was dropped off near a pond in Duxbury. There, what began as a cigarette break escalated into a deadly struggle.

Testimonies heard in court detailed Callahan’s account of the altercation, during which he said he subdued his father in the water multiple times to banish a demon he termed “Dirty Dan.” Plymouth Assistant District Attorney Shanan Buckingham described how Callahan methodically dunked his father’s head under the water, believing the act was akin to a baptism.

The defense cast a shadow of torment over the young man, who was described as visibly emotional in court as the prosecutors recounted the harrowing final moments of his father’s life. In a macabre twist, Callahan allegedly engaged in a one-sided conversation with his father’s body post-mortem, leaving his father’s fate to a choice between heaven and hell.

The defense team will likely explore the depth of Callahan’s mental health issues at the time of the incident, a factor that could heavily influence the jury’s verdict.

The court, presided over by Judge William Sullivan, anticipates that the trial will unfold over roughly one and a half weeks. Throughout this period, the young man’s plea of not guilty to the charge of murder stands, adding a layer of complexity to a case entangled with notions of mental illness, spirituality, and paternal bond.

The outcome will serve as a crucial judgment not only on the law’s stance on mental health and criminal responsibility but also as a closure to a family tragedy that has captured public attention.