Dad fatally stabs mother of his kids while they sleep on couch with her, WA cops say
A man is accused of fatally stabbing the mother of his four children while two of their kids slept on a couch beside her, Washington prosecutors said.
Police responded to the stabbing at 10:58 p.m. on Aug. 1 in Seattle, police said in a probable cause statement.
The man approached the woman, who was sitting on the couch at their home, with her phone in his hand, police said.
The man told the woman to get up and then told his 11-year-old son to leave the room, police said.
This child told police he watched his father take a knife from the block and begin stabbing his mother, police said.
The child yelled at his father to stop, police said. His mother went to him and put her arms around him while his father continued to stab her, police said.
The father fled from the house and was arrested later.
The mother was pronounced dead at the home by first responders. She had approximately 35 “sharp force injuries” across her body, including defensive wounds on hand and arm, according to an autopsy report.
The couple’s 17-year-old son told police his father seemed “calm” during the attack, police said. Another child also told police his parents were arguing about divorce.
While they were together for 20 years, the parents were never married, the woman’s brother told police.
In 2017, the woman received a court order of protection from the man after reporting two incidents where he physically assaulted her, police said.
Weeks before her death, police said, the woman told another brother that she was trying to leave the man again.
The man has been charged with first-degree murder.
His next court hearing is Aug. 18.
McClatchy News is not naming the father in order to protect the identities of the children.
This story was originally published August 10, 2022 at 11:19 AM with the headline "Dad fatally stabs mother of his kids while they sleep on couch with her, WA cops say."
