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‘You Took My Life, So I'm Taking Yours,’ 92-Year-Old Mom Says After Allegedly Killing Son Who’d Have Put Her In Home
Anna Mae Blessing hid two pistols in her robe before opening fire on her 72-year-old son, just days after he mentioned placing her in an assisted living facility, police say.
A 92-year-old Arizona woman didn’t want to go to an assisted living facility but now may find herself in another kind of facility: prison.
Anna Mae Blessing allegedly shot and killed her 72-year-old son Monday inside the Fountain Hills, Arizona apartment they shared with her son’s girlfriend, according to the Arizona Republic.
"You took my life, so I'm taking yours," Blessing allegedly said to her dead son as deputies arrested her. The victim hasn't been identified.
A few days before the deadly shooting, Blessing’s son told her that he was considering putting her into an assisted living home, according to FOX10 in Phoenix. She stewed over that conversation for days before allegedly deciding to end her son’s life.
"Blessing retrieved two pistols and concealed them in the pockets of her robe then confronted her son in his bedroom,” Maricopa County Sheriff's Office officials stated. “During the confrontation, Blessing stated that she removed the handgun and fired multiple rounds striking and killing her son. She then pointed the gun at her son’s girlfriend and the two struggled over the weapon when it was dislodged from her hand.”
At this point, Blessing allegedly retrieved the second handgun from her robe and attempted to point it at her son’s girlfriend, who knocked it out of Blessing’s hand, according to police.
The girlfriend was able to get away and dial 911.
Blessing’s son had wanted to put her into a nursing home because she had become difficult to live with, the Arizona Republic reported. Police were called to the home in the past because of a verbal altercation between Blessing and her son, FOX 10 reported. They have only been living together for about six months.
When police arrived at the scene, Blessing was sitting in a recliner. She allegedly police told that she wanted to kill herself, too, but there were no weapons left for her to do that.
Blessing made her first court appearance in a wheelchair, the Associated Press reported. She faces charges of first-degree murder, aggravated assault with a deadly weapon and kidnapping. Her bond has been set at $500,000. Her next court hearing has been set for July 10.
[Photo: Maricopa County Sheriff's Office]
