Louisiana man Daniel Callihan pleaded guilty in Mississippi on Monday to charges related to a case in which he killed his ex-girlfriend before taking her daughters across state lines and killing the younger child.
The plea by Callihan is the third lifesaving one he’s made over the past two months, ensuring he does not have to face the death penalty. He pleaded guilty on Aug. 7 in federal court and on Sept. 26 in Louisiana state court. He was sentenced to two consecutive life sentences in Louisiana, sentenced to life without parole in Mississippi, and will be sentenced to a minimum of life in prison by a federal judge later this year.
“My responsibility is to ensure the safety of the public in rendering my verdict,” Hinds County Circuit Judge Debra Gibson said Monday when handing down the sentence, per WLBT-TV. “You’ll be in prison for life without the possibility of parole.”
Charges Callihan pleaded guilty to in Mississippi included one count of capital murder, two counts of sexual battery, and two counts of kidnapping. He faced similar charges in Louisiana and on the federal level.
On June 12, 2024, the now-38-year-old Callihan killed 35-year-old Callie Brunett inside her trailer home in Loranger, La., before kidnapping her two daughters: 4-year-old Erin and 6-year-old Jalie. While law enforcement arrested Callihan one day later at a home on Boozier Drive in Jackson, they also found the body of Erin. Jalie was found alive, transported to a local hospital for treatment, and has since been living with family members.
A gruesome indictment by a Mississippi grand jury later revealed that Callihan molested Jalie. Further court records said he stabbed Brunett some 50 times before holding the girls inside a Jackson hotel room, abusing them, and leaving them to die under a mattress near the residence he was arrested at.
During his perp walk on June 14 in Hinds County, Callihan fessed up to the crimes and told reporters that he wanted the death penalty.
“I have told them everything I did, and I have agreed not to fight it,” he said while being strapped into a police cruiser. “For what I did, lethal injection is the easiest thing for me.”
Callihan went on to partially blame his actions on an antidepressant while claiming he has dissociative identity disorder, which is when a person has multiple, distinct personalities with various identities controlling their behavior at different times, per the Cleveland Clinic.
A sober Callihan and his attorneys did all they could to recant his petition to be killed, leading to all three plea deals not including the death penalty yet resulting in Callihan never walking outside of a prison yard again.
During proceedings in Hinds County on Monday, Callihan was met by the sister of Callie, who called him “a demon” from the stand.
“The hole you left behind cannot be filled. We are forever changed in the worst possible way because of you,” Brandi Hosch said, per WLBT-TV. “You have no soul. You are a demon. Not one day goes by that we are not lost, angry, or sickened because of you.
“I hope every time you close your eyes, you have nightmares, and you never rest. … When you look down at your hands, I hope you can’t unsee what they have done.”
Callihan, who said very little during Monday’s proceedings, will serve out his sentences at the Louisiana State Penitentiary.
Victoria Cox, who was arrested as an accomplice of Callihan’s, is facing murder and kidnapping charges in both Mississippi and Louisiana, as well. Her trial in Hinds County is scheduled for Dec. 8. She’s accused of assisting Callihan in the kidnapping of Erin and Jalie.
