Bruce Johnson Jr. (left) and Mary Johnson.Photo:Lea County Sheriff’s Office; Lea County Detention Center
Lea County Sheriff’s Office; Lea County Detention Center
A mother convicted in the stabbing death of her 11-year-old son was sentenced this week to 20 years in a New Mexico state prison, according to multiple news reports.
At 1 a.m. on July 10, 2022, deputies with the Lea County Sheriff’s Office responded to the family’s home in Hobbs, N.M., after Mary’s husband, Bruce Johnson Sr., called 911 to report that his wife and son had been stabbed, apress releasestates.
Bruce Sr. reportedly told police he woke up to the sound of his son, Bruce Jr., screaming, before finding him lying on a bed with multiple stab wounds. He went to call police when he discovered Mary, had also been stabbed but was unconscious in another room, per the release.
The 11-year-old boy, who was still conscious, was rushed to the hospital, police said. There, he reportedly told authorities that his mother, Mary, was the person who stabbed him. He died a short time later.
Mary also allegedly told hospital staff, “If I can’t have him, no one can,” referring to her son, KRQE reports.
According to the Lea County Sheriff’s Office, Bruce Sr. said he and his son moved from Oklahoma to New Mexico to get away from Mary, who he alleged was abusing the boy. Bruce Sr. reportedly intended to file for divorce, citing the alleged abuse and claimed Mary had also been violent with him.
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“Such a tragic event when anyone, especially a young person dies untimely and at the hands of a parent,” District Attorney Diana Luce said, per theHobbs News-Sun.“These types of cases are never easy. We can only hope to provide some sense of closure and justice to the family.”
source: people.com
