New Mexico mother accused of stabbing herself and fatally stabbing her 11-year-old son
07/14/2022 2:56 pm PDT
HOBBS, N.M. (TCD) -- A 49-year-old mother on the brink of divorce with her husband stands accused of fatally stabbing her 11-year-old son and inflicting stab wounds on herself.
According to a news release from the Lea County Sheriff’s Office, on Sunday, July 10, deputies responded to a home on the 3900 block of North Dal Paso to a report of a stabbing. Bruce Johnson Sr. had reportedly called 911 and told authorities his son and wife had both been stabbed.
Johnson was asleep and allegedly heard his son screaming. He found his son, Bruce Johnson Jr., lying on a bed with stab wounds, and when he went to call 911, he found his wife, Mary Johnson, unconscious in another room suffering from stab wounds as well.
Mary Johnson and her son were reportedly transported to a hospital. According to the Sheriff’s Office, Mary was treated for self-inflicted stab wounds to her chest and later stabilized. She was brought to a hospital in Texas, where she remains in critical condition, KCBD-TV reports.
While conscious, Johnson Jr. spoke to an investigator at the hospital, saying that his mother had stabbed him, the Sheriff’s Office said. Johnson Jr. later succumbed to his injuries and was pronounced dead at around 4:19 a.m., according to the Sheriff’s Office.
Johnson Jr.’s body was reportedly brought into the Office of the Medical Investigator in Albuquerque, New Mexico, and it was determined that he had been stabbed multiple times.
Upon further investigation, the Sheriff’s Office said Johnson Sr. moved to Hobbs with his son from Oklahoma. Mary Johnson reportedly stayed behind because Johnson Sr. believed she had been abusing their son.
He allegedly wanted to file for a divorce, and Mary would become violent with him whenever she brought it up. Johnson Sr. told authorities it had been approximately 40 days since his wife had last seen their son, and she begged to see him. She then came to live with them and spend time with the family before the divorce was filed.
According to the Sheriff’s Office, a warrant has been issued for Mary Johnson’s arrest for first-degree murder.
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