‘Dungeon Master’ murderer sentenced for killing his ex in Wisconsin

Logan Barclay from Janesville, WI, will spend the rest of his life in prison for the 2024 murder of Barclay’s ex and the mother of his child, Kiersten Hansen. Prosecutors compared Barclay to a “Dungeon Master” from Dungeons & Dragons, which Barclay plays, for the detail with which he planned the crime.

Barclay’s sentence was handed down on Feb. 12 this year, and according to the Rock County District Attorney’s Office, Barclay, now 23, “lured” Hansen to a remote wilderness trail near Janesville where Barclay shot her in the abdomen, left her for dead, and took her cell phone. Hansen was 22 when she died and reportedly pregnant. According to Janesville police, a hiker found Hansen’s body and called the authorities. Hansen was pronounced dead at the scene.

Barclay threatened Hansen before

#BREAKING: Logan Barclay, 24, has been sentenced to life in prison for killing his ex-girlfriend, Kiersten Hansen, and leaving her body on Peace Trail bike path in April 2024. Details: https://t.co/jjPsH0Js8Z pic.twitter.com/aMD88gjXRU

— Eyewitness News WTVO/WQRF (@MyStateline) February 11, 2025

Right away, Barclay was declared a suspect in the case, given his previous relationship with Hansen and the fact they shared a child. According to Janesville news WCLO, Hansen’s pregnancy motived the murder, although it’s unclear if Barclay was the child’s father. When Hansen died, Hansen and Barclay’s other child was reportedly in Barclay’s parents’ custody.

Barclay pleaded guilty to Hansens’s murder and was convicted in November of last year. At the trial, District Attorney Jason Sanders played portions of Barclay’s interrogation for the jury, comparing him to a “Dungeon Master” for the way he  “set up everything, the entire game, and nobody else knew they were playing.”

Barclay reportedly told investigators he’d controlled Hansen with fear before. “I’ve never tried to scare her with anything that big before; it’s worked a lot, actually. Never physical, but the idea of it is usually enough,” Barclay reportedly told the police. He planned his alibi with friends and planned Hansen’s murder “down to the T,” the prosecution said.

DA Sanders told the court, “What Logan Barclay did is utterly, morally, reprehensible. Thanks to him, Kiersten didn’t just come into the world with company,” DA Sanders added, referring to Hansen’s twin brother and her unborn child. “She left with it, too,” Sanders said.

Barclay should be eligible for parole, according to his defense

According to Barclay’s defense, he had no previous criminal record, had a mental health diagnosis, and lived with trauma from his brother’s murder, which his attorneys said should be considered in his sentencing, asking for Barclay to be made eligible for parole “at some point.” The judge ruled Barclay is eligible for parole in 50 years.

At his sentencing hearing, Barclay said, “I’d like to apologize to the family and all the other people affected by my actions. I’m sorry. That’s all.” Hansen’s mother, Karen Hansen, also spoke, telling Barclay he was only sorry because he got caught, Gazette Extra reported. Karen added, “I hope you spend the rest of your time left here on this planet wasting away in misery, every day of your directionless, pathetic life,” and then told Barclay to “rot in hell.” 

Hansen’s twin, Andrew Hansen, also addressed his sister’s murderer. “Over the past year, I’ve had to come to terms with the fact that the sister, that I have been with since birth, is gone. I have to move through life knowing that her story was cut short, and my future children will never know their aunt,” Andrew said.