{"id":32701,"date":"2026-08-08T15:23:37","date_gmt":"2026-08-08T10:23:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/?p=32701"},"modified":"2026-08-08T15:23:37","modified_gmt":"2026-08-08T10:23:37","slug":"wisconsin-girl-lily-peters-accused-murderer-wont-stand-trial-for-grisly-killing-sexual-assault-of-cousin","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/?p=32701","title":{"rendered":"Wisconsin girl Lily Peters&#8217; accused murderer won\u2019t stand trial for grisly killing, sexual assault of cousin"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><script>\r\n  atOptions = {\r\n    'key' : '644b717812d811d6a1c1fc5b6ccd6fa6',\r\n    'format' : 'iframe',\r\n    'height' : 90,\r\n    'width' : 728,\r\n    'params' : {}\r\n  };\r\n<\/script>\r\n<script src=\"https:\/\/www.highperformanceformat.com\/644b717812d811d6a1c1fc5b6ccd6fa6\/invoke.js\"><\/script>\r\n<br \/>\n<br \/><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content%2Fuploads%2Fsites%2F2%2F2026%2F08%2Fnewspress-collage-766855fak-1786183263150.jpg?quality%3D90%26strip%3Dall%261786168877\" \/><\/p>\n<div>\n<p>Wisconsin girl Lily Peters\u2019 accused murderer won\u2019t stand trial for the grisly slaying and rape of his 10-year-old cousin, who was<a href=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/2022\/04\/26\/lily-peters-10-found-dead-near-wisconsin-walking-trail\/\"> found dead in the Wisconsin woods.<\/a><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/2022\/04\/28\/father-of-lily-peters-accused-teen-killer-is-convicted-pedophile\/\">Carson Peters-Berger, 18,<\/a> was expected to face a jury in November as he faced homicide and sexual assault charges after he allegedly killed his younger relative, Peters, in April 2022.<\/p>\n<p>However, the Chippewa County District Attorney Wade Newell announced Wednesday that a resolution hearing would be held on Aug. 26, ending the case against Peters-Berger over four years after Peters\u2019 death, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.weau.com\/2026\/08\/05\/lily-peters-homicide-case-end-without-trial-resolution-hearing-set-aug-26\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">WEAU reported.<\/a><\/p>\n<figure class=\"nyp-slideshow-modal-image wp-block-image aligncenter size-large\"><figcaption>Lily Peters was killed on April 24, 2022, in Chippewa Falls, Wisconsin. <span class=\"credit\">Facebook\/Locate The Missing<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>It was not immediately clear what would be discussed at the hearing, as Chippewa County Judge Steven Gibbs sealed online court records.<\/p>\n<p>Peters-Berger was 14 when he <a href=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/2022\/04\/27\/lily-peters-was-strangled-sexually-assaulted-by-14-year-old\/\">allegedly killed Peters<\/a>, leaving her abused corpse in the wilderness.<\/p>\n<aside class=\"single__inline-module aligncenter wp-block-nypost-editor-primary-tag\">\n<\/aside>\n<p>Peters\u2019 father reported his daughter missing after she failed to return home from her aunt\u2019s Chippewa Falls residence at 9 a.m. on April 24, according <a href=\"https:\/\/www.fox9.com\/news\/accused-lily-peters-murderer-resolution-hearing-date-set-aug-7-2026\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">to Fox9.<\/a><\/p>\n<p>Two hours after her expected arrival home, Peters\u2019 father found her abandoned bike near the woods in Chippewa Falls.<\/p>\n<p>A search party of volunteers discovered her partially naked, abused corpse the next morning in the wooded area off a walking trail.<\/p>\n<p>Her death was ruled a homicide by <a href=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/2022\/04\/28\/lily-peters-10-died-from-blunt-force-trauma-strangulation\/\">blunt force trauma and strangulation.<\/a><\/p>\n<figure class=\"nyp-slideshow-modal-image wp-block-image aligncenter size-large is-resized\"><figcaption>Peters was found in the woods by a search party on April 25, 2022.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Peters-Berger allegedly told police he had been walking the trail with his younger cousin when he asked her to explore off the path before he allegedly launched into the deadly sexual attack, according to a criminal complaint viewed by the outlet.<\/p>\n<p>The older cousin was carrying his hoverboard while Peters carried her bike.<\/p>\n<p>The teen admitted to police that  \u201cwhen they left the house it was already his intention to rape and kill [Lily],\u201d the complaint stated.<\/p>\n<div class=\"single__inline-module inline-module inline-module--newsletter aligncenter inline-module--nypostbusinessunit aligncenter wp-block-nypost-editor-newsletter\" data-source-unit=\"Inline Newsletter Module Morning Report\">\n<div class=\"inline-module__inner\">\n<div class=\"inline-module__title-wrapper\">\n<div class=\"inline-module__unsubmitted-title-wrapper\">\n<h3 class=\"inline-module__title headline headline--combo-sm-md\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tStart your day with all you need to know\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/h3>\n<p class=\"inline-module__cta\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tMorning Report delivers the latest news, videos, photos and more.\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><h3 class=\"inline-module__title headline headline--combo-sm-md\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\tThanks for signing up!\t\t\t\t\t<\/h3>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>When they were off the trail, Peters-Berger said he punched his cousin in the stomach, knocked her to the ground, hit her three times with a large stick <a href=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/2022\/04\/27\/autopsy-underway-for-10-year-old-wisconsin-girl-lily-peters\/\">before strangling her to the point of death.<\/a><\/p>\n<p>He sexually assaulted his cousin after believing she was dead, he told police.<\/p>\n<p>The teen then allegedly got scared, ran home, changed his clothes and showered.<\/p>\n<p>He returned to Peters\u2019 body the same night after hearing she was reported missing, and dragged her body a few feet further before covering her in leaves.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"nyp-slideshow-modal-image wp-block-image aligncenter size-large\"><figcaption>Iliana \u201cLily\u201d M. Peters was reported missing by her father after she failed to return home from her aunt\u2019s house. <span class=\"credit\">Chippewa Falls Police Department\/Facebook<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<figure class=\"nyp-slideshow-modal-image wp-block-image aligncenter size-large\"><figcaption>A makeshift memorial set up for Lily Peters displayed in Chippewa Falls, Wis., on April 25, 2022. <span class=\"credit\">AP<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Peters-Berger was arrested days later and charged with first-degree intentional homicide, first-degree sexual assault and first-degree sexual assault of a child.<\/p>\n<p>The teen has been held in jail on a $1 million cash bond since his arrest.<\/p>\n<p>During his time behind bars, prosecutors successfully sought to try Peters-Berger as an adult and the teen\u2019s identity was made public after it was initially not released because he was a juvenile.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"nyp-slideshow-modal-image wp-block-image aligncenter size-large\"><figcaption>Peters-Berger admitted to police of sexually assaulting his cousin after killing her. <span class=\"credit\">Chippewa Falls Police Department\/Facebook<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Attorneys for Peters-Berger had requested a change in venue and certain jury selection requirements, arguing they would get an unfair trial in Chippewa County because of the extensive media coverage of Peters\u2019 death.<\/p>\n<p>Judge Gibbs granted the changes, and jury selection was set to be held between October 21 and 22, with the 10-day trial kicking off on Nov. 2.<\/p>\n<p>Peters-Berger faced life in prison if he was found guilty in the trial.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<script async=\"async\" data-cfasync=\"false\" src=\"https:\/\/pl30214220.effectivecpmnetwork.com\/9ab3d4df8a7e1a6171e16ddbf732cc19\/invoke.js\"><\/script>\r\n<div id=\"container-9ab3d4df8a7e1a6171e16ddbf732cc19\"><\/div>\r\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Wisconsin girl Lily Peters\u2019 accused murderer won\u2019t stand trial for the grisly slaying and rape of his 10-year-old cousin, who was found dead in the Wisconsin woods. Carson Peters-Berger, 18, was expected to face a jury in November as he faced homicide and sexual assault charges after he allegedly killed his younger relative, Peters, in&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":32702,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/newspress-collage-766855fak-1786183263150.jpg?quality=75&strip=all&1786168877&w=1200","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-32701","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news-hub"],"brizy_media":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/32701","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=32701"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/32701\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/32702"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=32701"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=32701"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=32701"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}