Grandmother Dies From 25 Stab Wounds After Intervening In Teen's Argument With Ex
A 73-year-old Maryland woman was fatally stabbed Thursday when she tried to intervene in an argument between her granddaughter and a man who attempted to break into her home.
Angelo Terrell Spencer, 24, was charged with first-degree murder and assault in connection to the death of Mary Catherine Bland and an attack on the 17-year-old granddaughter, who survived with non-life-threatening injuries, Bel Air police announced. He was also charged with rape, though it was not immediately clear if that was alleged to have occurred as part of the same incident.
According to a press release, officers responded to Bland’s home shortly before 3 p.m. on Thursday to find her suffering from multiple stab wounds. She was immediately taken to a hospital, where she was pronounced dead.
Investigators took Spencer into custody less than 90 minutes after authorities initially received a 911 call, the press release said.
“We know that it was him inside the residence. He was identified, walked away from the residence,” Charles Moore, the chief of Bel Air police, told local NBC affiliate WBAL-TV. According to the outlet, police said that Spencer was previously in a relationship with the granddaughter.
A charging document cited by WBAL-TV said that Spencer had purchased a glass cutter and a pocketknife prior to the incident andattempted to break into the back of Bland’s home.
Spencer then rang the front doorbell and spoke to Bland before he allegedly pushed his way into the home, according to the news station.
Moore told WBAL-TV that the stabbing came during an argument between the granddaughter and Spencer. Bland tried to intervene and was stabbed as a result, Moore said.
Spencer allegedly stabbed Bland in the shoulder after she yelled, and then continued to stab her in a panic. Bland reportedly suffered 25 stab wounds.
Spencer confessed to grabbing the 17-year-old by her neck but denied sexually assaulting her, according to the charging document cited by WBAL-TV.
Court records reviewed by HuffPost show that Spencer is being held without bond. It’s unclear if he has retained an attorney.
Charlotte Green, one of Spencer’s former co-workers, attended a Friday court hearing in his support and expressed disbelief over the allegations against him, WBAL-TV said.
“Something had to make him snap. I’m getting ready to cry,” Green told the outlet. “He’s full of life, and he’s too young for this to happen, and he’s going to ruin his life if he’s found guilty.”
Need help? In the U.S., call 1-866-331-9474 or text “loveis” to 22522 for the National Dating Abuse Helpline. Visit RAINN’s National Sexual Assault Online Hotline or the National Sexual Violence Resource Center’s website.
