Leavenworth man charged with deaths of young sons ‘unfit to stand trial’

LEAVENWORTH, Kan. (KCTV) - The capital murder trial for a Leavenworth man accused of killing his two young sons is on hold.

A Leavenworth judge found that Donald R. Jackson, Jr. is not competent to stand trial during a hearing on June 26.

The 45-year-old is charged with capital murder in the deaths of his 12 and 14-year-old sons. The boys were found dead inside Jackson’s home near Leavenworth in October 2020.

Police issued Amber Alerts in multiple states when they failed to locate Jackson and his two daughters who were 7 and three-years old at the time.

Jackson was ultimately taken into custody in Oklahoma about six hours later. The two missing girls were in the car with him and returned safely.

According to court documents filed in the case, medical experts at Larned State Hospital determined Jackson is not competent to stand trial, and there “is no likelihood of restoration in the foreseeable future.”

The filing also asks the state to begin proceedings to involuntarily commit Jackson.

Jackson is scheduled to be back in court on December 18, 2025.