MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) - A Memphis mother who claimed evil voices told her to kill her two young sons was insane when she fatally stabbed them in a home in 2013, a judge ruled Friday.
Jamina Briggs, 31, was found not guilty by reason of insanity in the deaths of her sons, 6-year-old Nicholas and 1-year-old Jeremiah, by Shelby County Criminal Court Judge Glenn Wright. The judge set a May 27 hearing to determine if Briggs should be committed to a psychiatric facility.
Court records show Briggs called 911 on July 31, 2013, saying she had stabbed her children. She told the operator she suffered from paranoid schizophrenia and bipolar disorder.
When officers arrived, they found Briggs with blood on her hands and the boys lying face down on a couch with multiple stab wounds. The boys were taken to a hospital, where they died.
Officers recovered a 9-inch steak knife with what appeared to be blood on it. Blood also was found in the living room, kitchen and bathroom. A medical examiner ruled Nicholas suffered eight stab wounds and Jeremiah four.
Records show Briggs had told relatives she had heard “evil” voices and, on the day of the stabbings, the voices told her to “go on and do it … get rid of them.” Briggs reported she first tried to suffocate the children but that method didn’t work.
According to a forensic evaluation, Briggs had received psychiatric treatment at least 39 times since 1998, records show. Briggs had made multiple suicide attempts and had been violent toward relatives, domestic partners and mental health workers, records show.
On the day of the stabbings, Brigg’s mother had custody of Briggs’ daughter Amber and of Nicholas, and had planned to seek custody of Jeremiah, records showed.
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