A Texas woman has been ordered to serve 30 years in prison after she stabbed her own mother to death and then pretended to be clueless about what happened moments after the killing, KHOU-TV reports.
Authorities allege that on August 16, 2021, Ericka Nicole McDonald (pictured left) wore black clothes and a mask and broke into her mother’s northwest Houston apartment through a window.
After stabbing her mother and an aunt, McDonald fled the scene, put on different clothes, and went back to her mother’s home within minutes. McDonald, 31, allegedly pretended that she didn’t know what had happened as first responders were working the scene.
The mother, 51-year-old Terri Mendoza (pictured right). was rushed to an area hospital but died there. The 63-year-old aunt was stabbed six times and survived after surgery, according to KTRK-TV.
As CrimeOnline previously reported, the aunt is said to have identified McDonald as the killer and saw her attempting to perform CPR on her mom before fleeing.
Investigators alleged that McDonald had been arguing with her mom and aunt before the attack. The dispute had gotten so heated that relatives called the police twice earlier in the day. Officers wanted to charge McDonald with assault and child endangerment, but prosecutors determined there was insufficient evidence to proceed with the charges.
McDonald was reportedly living with relatives at a different apartment near where her mother lived. Police later found a knife and bloody clothing in the apartment where McDonald was living, KPRC-TV reports.
As part of a deal with prosecutors in which McDonald pleaded guilty, she cannot appeal the conviction or sentence and is required to serve at least half of the 30 years before she could be paroled.
“This is a tragic case and should not have happened, but prosecutors with our Homicide Division were able to get justice for the victim,” Harris County District Attorney Kim Ogg said, according to KHOU-TV.
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[Feature Photo: Ericka McDonald/Houston Police Department; Terri Mendoza/Facebook]
