Jacob Lee Carney murdered his grandmother, Mary Carney, and tried to kill her fiance, James Wilyard, prosecutors said. (Mug shot: Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office)
A young man has pleaded guilty to fatally stabbing his grandmother found with 114 stab and incision wounds, according to ClarksvilleNow in Tennessee.
Authorities said Jacob Lee Carney, 21, lurked while masked in his grandmother, Mary Carney’s kitchen one night in May 2020 and attacked her fiance, James Wilyard. When she intervened, Carney stabbed her more than 100 times, authorities said. The motive wasn’t revealed.
“He never did say why he did it,” Deputy District Attorney Michael Pugh told the outlet.
Carney was 17 when it happened. Mary, his maternal grandmother, was working on adopting him.
That came to an end that night. Wilyard, recovering from heart surgery, was sitting in the living room watching TV when he heard noise from the kitchen, Pugh said. There were no lights on. Usually, Wilyard could hear music from Jacob’s room but there was nothing this time.
Thinking that Mary and Jacob were asleep in their rooms, Wilyard went to check. Eventually, the light turned on, and he found Carney wearing all black, a mask and gloves. The teenager was holding what Wilyard described as the biggest knife in the kitchen, Pugh said.
They struggled over the knife, but eventually, Jacob stabbed him in the back. Mary woke up, rushed over, but slipped on blood, falling.
She grabbed Jacob’s wrist and told Wilyard to call 911, the prosecutors said.
Wilyard locked himself in a bedroom and called 911. Jacob beat on the door, attempting to force his way in. Cops found Mary dead and Wilyard suffering stab wounds to his back, legs, arms, neck, and head.
Jacob was in his bedroom, covered in blood.
He reportedly pleaded guilty in exchange for concurrent sentences of life with the possibility of parole for the murder and 15 years for attempted murder.
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