On Dec. 16, a jury found Erik C. Luden guilty of second-degree murder for the May 30 slaying of his father, a Sammamish business owner and resident.

Whitman County Judge David Frazier sentenced Luden, of Pullman, Washington, to 20 years and 4 months in prison Dec. 18, according to court documents.

The Whitman County Superior Court also levied Luden a $900 fine.

Second-degree murder, a class A felony, carries a maximum sentence of life and a $50,000 fine.

The court’s decision came after two days of testimony, including that of experts who claimed Luden’s father, Virgil, was alive for the majority of the attack. Erik Luden hit Virgil Luden over the head and neck with a kitchen pot a minimum of 15 times, according to expert testimony, the Moscow-Pullman Daily News reported.

After testimony, the jury deliberated for more than five hours, according to the Moscow-Pullman Daily news.

On the night of the murder, then 24-year-old Erik Luden reportedly called 911 claiming his father came at him with a kitchen knife. Erik Luden told the 911 dispatcher that he “responded” and hit his father in the head with a steel pot, according to court documents.

Pullman police found Virgil Luden, 58, dead upon arrival at his son’s apartment located near Washington State University.

Virgil Luden suffered from blunt force trauma to the head and neck, confirmed by autopsy the following Monday.

Virgil Luden, who went by “Cliff,” had been a mortgage broker for more than 25 years. He established his business, Sage Home Loans, in Issaquah and Sammamish in 2000.

He traveled to Pullman to help his son move, court documents say.