Tyler’s parents wouldn’t let him have a party. So he killed them.

Content warning: This story includes descriptions of extreme violence.

At 1:15pm on July 16, 2011, Tyler Hadley posted a status on Facebook.

"Party at my crib tonight… maybe," it read. 

A friend replied, "What if your parents come home?"

They knew the Florida teenager had recently been grounded for drinking and drug use. His parents had been worried about him for years, sending him to psychiatrists and substance abuse programs, but nothing was working. He wasn't allowed his phone or his car that weekend, let alone a party. His friends were sceptical.

But by 8:15pm, the 17-year-old had confirmed. 

"They won't. trust me [sic]," he replied to his mate.

By midnight, more than 60 people had descended on the Hadley home in Port St Lucie and it was getting pretty rowdy.

Watch: Tyler Hadley apologises. Post continues below.

At first Hadley tried to stop people smoking inside, but he eventually gave up. Cigarettes were being snubbed out on the walls, and teenagers were urinating on neighbours' lawns as the crowd got drunker and drunker. 

At first, Hadley had been telling people his parents were in Orlando for the weekend. But his story started to change. 

"They don't live here. This is my house," he told one partier. Then he pulled his friend Michael Mandell aside and told him the truth.

"Mike, I killed my parents."

The murder of Blake and Mary-Jo Hadley.

Tyler had been telling his mates in the days before the murders that he wanted to kill his parents. They didn't take him seriously. But on the day of the party, he stole his parents' phones (so they couldn't call for help), took some ecstasy at around 5pm and collected a hammer from the garage.

He attacked his mother first, swinging the hammer at the back of her head while she sat at her computer. 

His dad ran into the room after hearing his wife's screams. 

"Why?" he asked his son, before being beaten to death himself.

Blake and Mary-Jo Hadley. Image: Rolling Stone.

Hadley then wrapped his parents in towels and dragged their bodies into their bedroom, hiding them beneath a pile of broken dishes, towels, pillowcases, books, and a coffee table. He spent the next three hours cleaning up the evidence ahead of his party.

After confiding in Micheal, Hadley led him to the master bedroom and showed his friend his parents' bodies. Photos from the scene show blood splattered all over the floor, duvet and door.

Micheal stayed at the party another 45 minutes, with the friends even taking a couple of selfies together. 

Micheal and Tyler took a number of selfies after his confession. Image: Rolling Stone.

Police arrived at the house around 2am after neighbours complained about the noise. They left shortly afterwards, telling Hadley to turn it down. By 4am, they'd returned to arrest him for murder after receiving an anonymous CrimeStoppers call from Micheal, who told them everything.

Life behind bars.

Three years after his arrest, a court sentenced Hadley to life in prison without the possibility for parole. During court proceedings, it was revealed that Blake and Mary had 36 areas of impact on their bodies after their son's fatal beating.

The judge condemned Hadley for a "brutal, heinous and premeditated" attack. 

According to letters Hadley wrote to his grandparents, which were published in a 2013 article in Rolling Stone, Hadley struggled to come to terms with his actions. 

"I was just living my life as a normal 17-year-old kid and next thing I know I'm in the middle of St. Lucie County jail… I ruined a lot of people's lives and I can't seem to forgive myself. I find myself crying a lot because of all the guilt," he wrote.

Tyler Hadley was arrested age 17 for the murder of his parents. Image: AAP.

In 2018, because of a change in Florida law stating minors cannot be sentenced to life in prison, Hadley was eligible for a retrial. Mike Hadley — Blake's brother and Tyler's uncle — testified, telling the court, "We have once again sat through a gut-wrenching horror show, only it was not a movie or a play, it was reality. It was my family. People who we loved."

"I don't know if he's a psychopath or not, I'm not a doctor, nor am I convinced that any drug or therapy can cut what's going on in his head. Nor do any of the doctors that will testify in this courtroom know without a doubt that he will not kill again," he added.

Hadley himself also addressed the court, expressing sorrow for killing his parents.

"Words cannot explain the amount of remorse and sorrow over my actions that have affected so many people," he said. "But most of all my family, who I still care about greatly."

He added that he didn't understand the reasons for his atrocious actions and that "there is no excuse".

The judge in the case decided that the original sentence for Hadley was the right one, upholding the life sentence.

"At this point, whether or not he will receive effective treatment and can be rehabilitated is anyone's guess. The appropriate sentence for Hadley is life for the murders of his parents," he said.

Feature Image: Florida Department of Corrections/AAP/Rolling Stone.