17-Year-Old Boy Stabs Twin Sister to Death, Claims He Was Asleep When He Puts the Knife on Her Neck
A 17-year-old boy accused of stabbing his twin sister to death in Harris County, Texas appeared in court to face charges on Thursday morning.
According to ABC13, Harris County Sheriff Ed Gonzalez said that Benjamin Elliott was charged with murder after he was found by deputies early Wednesday morning performing CPR on his sister, Meghan Elliott, in a bedroom of their home located in Brown Meadow Court.
Gonzalez said Meghan sustained several stab wounds to her neck.
Texas Teen Stabs Twin on the Neck
Based on Benjamin's claim, he woke up between 2:30 a.m. and 3 a.m. and found himself in his sister's bedroom with a knife in her neck, realizing that he was no longer dreaming. Benjamin said he removed the knife from his sister's neck and sat it beside her before he called 911, Click2Houston reported.
After informing the 911 operator about the situation, the Texas teen was instructed to perform CPR, which Gonzalez confirmed he was doing when deputies arrived on the scene. Court documents noted that the twins' parents woke up and screamed after what they had discovered moments after the initial call.
EMS personnel also arrived and pronounced Meghan Elliott dead from her injuries. A $100,000 bond was set on the murder charge against her brother.
During his appearance in court, prosecutors said that Benjamin Elliott admitted to the investigators that he has never suffered from any sleep disorders and has not taken any drugs or alcohol.
However, Benjamin's attorneys said they would go through his medical records to see if he did have issues before the incident.
A neighbor named Robert Dawson, who saw the Elliott twins go to and from the bus daily, said he was shocked at what happened.
Benjamin's attorneys shared a photo of the twins together on a beach and said the twins were not fighting and got along well.
Texas Teen Claims Sleepwalking During Stabbing Twin
As of Thursday morning, Benjamin Elliott remained in custody at the Harris County Jail. Based on the information from the neighbors, the siblings attended Cypress Park High School. It was not the first time that sleepwalking was used as a defense.
Raymond Lazarine, who killed his wife, used the sleepwalking defense during his murder trial in Harris County in 2019. He was still convicted.
A law professor from South Texas College, Kenneth Williams, said Benjamin Elliott would be facing an uphill battle since he chose the sleepwalking defense.
"It is extremely hard to prove because it's hard to get a jury to believe he actually was sleepwalking and was not aware of what he was doing," Williams noted.
The next hearing of Benjamin Elliott's murder case is on Friday morning.
This article is owned by Latin Post
Written by: Jess Smith
WATCH: 17-Year-Old Accused of Stabbing His Sister to Death While Their Parents Slept at Their Katy-Area Home - From Khou 11
Subscribe to Latin Post!
Sign up for our free newsletter for the Latest coverage!
