Jury selection begins for retrial of Houston man accused of murdering parents as a teen

A.J. Armstrong is accused of killing his parents in 2016. He was 16 years old when he was charged.

Monday, October 3, 2022

2nd retrial set for Houston son accused of killing parents as a teen

AJ Armstrong's trial back in 2019 ended in a mistrial after claims that his older half-brother could be the real killer. If Armstrong is found guilty in this retrial, he'll get life in prison.

HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) -- The trial is set to begin for AJ Armstrong, a son charged with murdering his parents when he was just 16 years old back in 2016.

Armstrong is now a 22-year-old father himself.

Investigators said Armstrong killed his parents because they came down hard on him over slipping grades and smoking weed.

But in his 2019 trial, which ended in a mistrial, the defense claimed AJ's older half-brother, Josh Armstrong, could be the real killer, saying he was mentally unstable.

Our Courtney Fischer has been following the case since the beginning, and she spoke with AJ's attorney about the case which has remained in judicial limbo due to backlogs.

WATCH: AJ Armstrong talks about life as an accused killer

A.J. Armstrong talks for the first time about what it's liked to be called a killer who destroyed his family.

"So, in this case are you happy it's gone on? Happy we've had COVID, and it's been pushed back so many times?" Courtney asked.

"Happy is not a word I'd use to describe it because you have to understand this is an enormous case with a lot of issues, under a lot of scrutiny, so every time we have a trial date, we have to prepare," said Rick DeToto.

Attorneys expect jury selection alone to take at least three days. If found guilty, AJ could spend life in prison.

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