Hardy Wills-Traxler sentenced to prison after second-degree murder charges

LE CENTER, Minn. (KEYC) - A Le Center man who pleaded guilty to killing his father before setting their home on fire will be sentenced today.

In January 2021, Hardy Robert Wills-Traxler, now 28, confessed to stabbing his father, 64-year-old Bruce Alan Traxler, and burning their family home.

Wills-Traxler was charged with second-degree murder and an arson charge was dropped as a part of his plea agreement in September 2022.

On Friday, Wills-Traxler was sentenced to 306 months in prison, with credit for the time he’s already spent in custody.

He’ll still have to serve for about 23 years.

Two-thirds of his sentence will be in prison, and he’ll be released for the last third of his sentence under supervision from the Commissioner Corrections.

If he were to violate any rules during his supervised release, Wills-Traxler would serve the rest of his sentence in prison.

Before his sentencing, Wills-Traxler spoke to the judge directly, expressing his sorrow and apologized to the Le Center community, his family, and his father.

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