Seth Privacky

Seth Stephen Privacky (1980 – July 15, 2010) was an American mass murderer from Muskegon, Michigan. He shot and killed his parents, brother, his brother's girlfriend, and his grandfather on November 29, 1998, at the age of 18. He pled no contest and was convicted of five counts each of first degree murder and felony firearm charges. A friend was charged with helping him dispose of the weapon and being an accessory to the crime but was acquitted. He was sentenced to life in prison without parole. He was shot and killed during a failed prison escape attempt with two other inmates at Kinross Correctional Facility on July 15, 2010.

Early life Privacky was born in 1980. At the time of the shooting, Privacky was a senior at Reeths-Puffer High School. His mother checked a box in a 1996 court questionnaire claiming that he "sometimes" drank alcohol at 16. and shoplifting from another store. He completed probation.

Security footage showed Privacky attempting to buy .22 caliber ammunition the night before the murders. His purchase was rejected due to his age. Where he obtained the ammunition used in the shooting was not known. Privacky claimed after the murders that his father threatened to kick him out, and that his father said that his parents no longer loved him. He said that he had been arguing with his father for months. Privacky grabbed his father's .22 Ruger handgun out of the closet and went downstairs, hiding it behind his back.

At 2pm, Privacky called a friend of his, also 18, to help him clean up the scene, and he arrived half an hour later. They wrapped the bodies in sheets and planned to bury them later. He admitted to what had happened and began cooperating with authorities.

A manhunt for Privacky began, and his school went on lockdown out of fear he would arrive. He was found guilty and sentenced to life in prison without parole on May 27, 1999. He and two other inmates carjacked a correctional staff semi-truck near the prison around 9:10 a.m. (ET) and tried to drive it through the double fence, resulting in a large breach in it. All three prisoners were level two security, the minimum allowed security for prisoners serving life in prison. After he was shot, the other two inmates surrendered. He was shot in the head, the same method of death as his victims. The driver of the truck was left with superficial injuries.

The two other prisoners involved in the escape attempt, Andrew Joseph Ross and Brian Lee Davidson, were also serving sentences for murder; Ross was subsequently sentenced to life in prison. As Davidson was already serving a sentence of life imprisonment, he was not charged for the escape attempt.