FOUNTAIN HILLS, Ariz. – A 92-year-old Arizona woman has been arrested and accused of fatally shooting her son who wanted to put her in an assisted living facility, authorities said on Tuesday.
Anna Mae Blessing has been booked into jail on suspicion of one count each of first-degree murder, aggravated assault with a deadly weapon and kidnapping, according to the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office.
Blessing was in a wheelchair at her initial court appearance on Tuesday where her bond was set at $500,000 and a lawyer was being appointed to represent her.
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Sheriff’s officials said Blessing’s 72-year-old son Thomas was found dead on Monday at his home in Fountain Hills, located about 48 kilometres northeast of Phoenix.
Blessing had been living with her son and his girlfriend for about six months, according to court records.
She told authorities that she argued with her son on Monday morning over the way she was being treated and was upset with him stating that he was going to place her in assisted living.
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“You took my life, so I’m taking yours,” Blessing is reported to have said, according to TIME magazine.
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Blessing told detectives she got out two handguns she has had since the 1970s — one bought at a gun store and the other obtained from her late husband.
She concealed two pistols in the pockets of her robe before confronting her son in his bedroom and firing multiple shots at him with one handgun, court records show.
The gun was dislodged from Blessing’s hand after a struggle with her son’s girlfriend, as well as the second weapon, authorities said.
The unidentified woman called authorities and Blessing was located on a recliner in the home and taken into custody.
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“It is always concerning when domestic issues escalate to violence or tragic outcomes,” Maricopa County Sheriff Paul Penzone said in a statement. “They are often isolated and neither predictable nor preventable.”
According to Penzone, authorities had been called to the home multiple times in recent weeks due to angry disputes between Blessing and her son. During a Thursday press conference, police said they discovered 11 more guns in the home, all belonging to Thomas.
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