MILLEDGEVILLE, Ga. — Steven Charles Barrett was expected to stand trial in just a few days for the brutal stabbing death of his elderly mother at her home at Lake Sinclair in March 2016, but Barrett surprised everyone in a Baldwin County courtroom Friday morning when he pleaded guilty to murder and other charges.

The 58-year-old Barrett, a former teacher, had been accused and indicted by a grand jury on seven different charges, including malice and felony murder in the slaying of his mother, Sandra Brantley Barrett.

“We initially had pretrial motions scheduled for [Friday] in anticipation for trial commencing on May 1,” Ocmulgee Judicial Circuit District Attorney Stephen A. Bradley told Baldwin County Superior Court Judge Alison T. Burleson. “Judge, it appears the defendant would like to enter a plea of guilty, and if the court will allow it, I will go through the factual bases and the specifics on the plea.”

Barrett was clad in an orange jumpsuit, the kind worn by inmates at the Baldwin County Law Enforcement Center. After entering his guilty plea, Barrett was sentenced to life in prison, plus 10 years on charges of malice murder, three counts of felony murder, two counts of aggravated cruelty to animals and one count of exploitation and intimidation of a disabled adult or elder person.

“Guilty or not guilty,” asked Burleson.

In a soft-spoken voice, Barrett replied, “Guilty.”

Barrett’s guilty plea followed conversations between Stephen A. Bradley and Public Defender John Bradley before the hearing began. Bradley, along with Assistant District Attorney Skye Gess and Baldwin County Sheriff’s Office Detective Capt. Brad King, worked together to prosecute the case.

Bradley laid out the facts of the case prior to Barrett’s guilty plea and his subsequently being sentenced for the crimes he admitted to during the hearing, which was attended by several members of the Brantley-Barrett families. During the sentencing phase, several of them were seen wiping tears from their eyes.

The district attorney said Mrs. Barrett was murdered in her home off Bill Johnson Road on March 16, 2016.

“At approximately 2 p.m. in the afternoon, the defendant walked three doors down from his house” and asked a neighbor to call 911, Stephen Bradley said.

The prosecutor said Barrett told his neighbor that someone had broken into the house the night before and killed his mother and her two dogs.

Stephen Bradley said when the first law enforcement officer, Deputy Carroll Smith, arrived on the scene, he found Barrett sitting in shorts on the front porch of the home he was sharing at the time with his mother.

“At that point, Deputy Smith went in and found the two dogs on mats and they had been stabbed, actually basically slit open,” Stephen Bradley said. “They were somewhat disembodied.”

Both dogs were found lying on mats near the kitchen.

“Loose in the home is the defendant’s dog, which as far as we can tell, unharmed,” Stephen Bradley said.

On the kitchen floor near a food preparation island and next to the refrigerator was Mrs. Barrett’s body.

“She was lying on her side covered by a towel with a large amount of blood underneath her,” Stephen Bradley said. “And she had a number of broken knives around, approximately four broken knives around her body.”

The prosecutor said Mrs. Barrett had clearly suffered a number of stab wounds.

Stephen Bradley said he later learned from forensic pathologist Dr. Sims Stanley that Mrs. Barrett had been stabbed 24 times.

“The most significant of which was in the chest that traveled through significant organs of the chest, and actually comes back out without leaving the body and re-enters a different angle,” he said. “[She] had a number of wounds all over her body, including her buttocks, her legs, and her arms.”

Dr. Stanley told authorities investigating the case that she believed Mrs. Barrett was killed about 24 hours before her body was discovered.

Stephen Bradley said authorities would never know precisely when Mrs. Barrett was killed, but the facts show that she had been there for some time.

“In other words, it was not a recent death,” Stephen Bradley said. “Some of the blood had begun drying, significantly.”

The prosecutor said a bluish colored T-shirt found in a bathroom had on its collar what he described as touch DNA from Barrett, as well as his mother’s DNA in blood on it.

Mrs. Barrett’s bedroom was in disarray. Family members said she was particular about keeping her room neat and tidy, Stephen Bradley pointed out.

Stephen Bradley said Mrs. Barrett had started sleeping with a bag and various personal items and money to “frankly keep it away from him.”

Barrett was taken into custody that same day. But he was not charged with his mother’s murder until later. Instead of answering questions from detectives at that time, Barrett invoked his right to legal counsel.

“The interview was stopped,” the district attorney said. “He (Barrett) then began making some questions to Capt. King along the lines of is my mother dead; is she deceased.”

King told Barrett that his mother was dead.

“He (Barrett) at that point acted confused,” Stephen Bradley said. “There was initially some question about the defendant’s mental state, but I know that Mr. Bradley has thoroughly parched that and does not believe there is enough grounds to come before the court with that and he is asserting that he is more than competent to enter a plea of guilty.”