A 49-year-old mother on the brink of divorce from her husband stands accused of fatally stabbing her 11-year-old son and inflicting stab wounds on herself.
The gruesome incident has shocked the small community in New Mexico, a mother was slapped with charges of first-degree murder, as per the Sheriff’s Office, on July 12. Lea County Sheriff’s Office investigators have issued an arrest warrant for Mary Johnson who stabbed her son Bruce Johnson Jr. to death.
Deputies said they responded after 1 p.m. on Sunday to the family’s home in the 3900 block of N. Dal Paso.
Bruce Jr.’s father, Bruce Johnson Sr., had called 911 to say both his son and wife were stabbed, according to authorities. He was asleep when he heard his son screaming, deputies said.
Bruce Sr. went to call 911 when he discovered his wife also stabbed but unconscious in another room, according to authorities.
Hobbs Fire-EMS took the mother and son to Covenant Hobbs Hospital. Mary was stabilized and taken to a hospital in Lubbock, Texas, approximately a 2-hour drive northeast of the city of Hobbs.
Investigators ultimately determined that she had stabbed herself.
“Bruce, Jr. was conscious upon arriving at the hospital, where he spoke with the Investigator, advising his mom, Mary, had stabbed him,” deputies said. “Bruce, Jr. succumbed to his injuries and was pronounced dead at 4:19 a.m. by the attending physician.”
The medical investigator determined through the autopsy that Bruce Jr. was stabbed multiple times.
The Lea County Sheriff’s Office said in a statement:
“Mr. Johnson told deputies that he was asleep when he heard his son screaming. He found his son in his room, lying on the bed suffering from stab wounds. He went to call 911 when he discovered Mary was also stabbed, but she was unconscious in another room. Mary suffered self-inflicted stab wounds to her chest. Bruce Jr. was conscious upon arriving at the hospital, where he spoke with the investigator, advising his mom, Mary, had stabbed him.”
According to AWM:
Mary was active on social media and posted a bizarre message from Kinston, Oklahoma, on June 8, 2022, writing: “Get your God degree to become a God! All you need to do is believe in yourself, respect others, and spread kindness.”
In another bizarre social media rant, she wrote, “My son and I discovered he can hear every f***** thing that I’m thinking. I don’t like this God! My son does not need to be listening to me talking to you! Any other mothers have this problem, or do I fall in that 2% category again? This is why I don’t want kids! They don’t give me freedom. I’m heard writing, thinking, reading, sleeping … Who wants to be Mother God?”
Mary and Johnson Sr were about to get divorced, and the former had shown a history of abusive and violent behavior towards her son. Upon noticing this, Johnson Sr decided to move away from her and planned on divorcing her eventually.
They moved to Hobbs from Oklahoma —where she was reported twice for abusing her son. Bruce was away from his mother for around 40 days until she started insisting that she meet him. Johnson agreed, and she visited them in Oklahoma before filing for divorce.
Prayers poured in for Bruce as the sheriff’s office released their statement entailing a detailed account of the crime.
One Facebook user even said, “I’m not shaming the dad at all here, but this is why we don’t let abusers back in. That 40 days she hadn’t seen that kid was probably the best 40 days of his life. May he RIP.”
