Man stabs ex 50 times before domestic abuse hearing, then dies fleeing, Florida cops say

A man accused of stabbing his ex-girlfriend “more than 50 times” was dead himself within hours of the attack, after crashing a car during his escape, according to investigators in Florida.

James Christopher Lindsey, 42, made it as far as neighboring Orange County when he was killed Friday, Dec. 6, in a single-car wreck, the Seminole County Sheriff’s Office said in a news release.

He is accused of killing 40-year-old Kristin Stevens during a 1 a.m. break-in at her home in Chuluota, about a 22-mile drive northeast from Orlando, the sheriff’s office said.

Stevens was stabbed so many times, a medical examiner has yet to establish a specific number, “but indicated it was more than 50 times,” the sheriff’s office told McClatchy News.

The attack happened the same day he was to be arraigned on a “domestic violence battery charge against Stevens,” the sheriff’s office said.

“Deputies responded to a call indicating that two individuals had suffered a stabbing. Upon deputies’ arrival at the home where the incident occurred, the female was located deceased in the home with numerous stab wounds; the male was at a neighbor’s house, where he fled to call 911,” the sheriff’s office said.

“He was transported to a local hospital with non-life-threatening injuries to the leg. The suspect, who until recently had been in a domestic partnership with the female victim, is believed to have broken into the home and attacked the two victims. He fled the scene before deputies arrived.”

A teenager was also in the home at the time, but was not harmed, officials said.

The identity of the injured male was not released.

Lindsey was found dead about four hours later at the scene of a crash on Fort Christmas Road in rural Orange County, officials said.

The Florida Highway Patrol reports Lindsey was driving over the speed limit when he “failed to negotiate a curve and ran off the road.” His 2018 Chrysler 300 hit a stop sign, multiple trees and a wire fence, then began flipping, a crash reports says. He was thrown from the vehicle and died at the scene, officials say.

Lindsey had “a history of domestic violence incidents involving law enforcement,” and was last arrested Nov. 6 for an attack on Stevens, officials said. He was due in court for arraignment on that charge the day he died, officials said.

The Seminole County Sheriff’s Office requested Lindsey be placed on Domestic Violence EMPACT (GPS) monitoring if he was given bond in the case. However, that request was not granted, the sheriff’s office said.

This story was originally published December 9, 2024 at 10:42 AM with the headline "Man stabs ex 50 times before domestic abuse hearing, then dies fleeing, Florida cops say."