Inset: Diane Grovola (Upper Darby Police Department). Background: The house where Grovola allegedly stabbed her daughter to death in Upper Darby Township, Pa. (Google Maps).
A Pennsylvania woman is behind bars after killing her adult daughter and attacking the family”s dog, Keystone State law enforcement say.
Diane Grovola, 57, stands accused of one count each of first-degree murder, third-degree murder, criminal homicide, possession of an instrument of crime, and aggravated cruelty to animals, according to the Upper Darby Police Department.
The underlying incident occurred during the early morning hours on Tuesday at a house on South Bishop Avenue in the unincorporated Secane area of Delaware County, located in the Philadelphia metro area.
At 6:38 a.m. on the day in question, the father of the victim – and the husband of the defendant – returned home from an overnight shift to a gruesome scene, according to a criminal complaint obtained by the Delaware County Daily Times.
Outside, responding officers were told Grovola was still armed with a knife. Inside, the defendant was allegedly found naked, covered in blood, and suffering from superficial, self-inflicted cuts to her own body, according to police. The defendant reportedly resisted officers’ commands and was forcibly taken into custody using wrist restraints.
“[S]orry, I should have stabbed myself first,” the woman allegedly said after being subdued.
Meanwhile, EMS personnel focused on Daniele Grovola, 23, who was suffering from multiple lacerations to her face, chest, legs, and back, according to law enforcement. Paramedics exhausted all lifesaving methods before pronouncing the victim dead at the scene at 7:07 a.m.
Later, detectives ran through the order of known events with the distraught father and husband.
The man said he left his job at the UPS facility at Philadelphia International Airport between 5 and 5:30 a.m., stopping to pick up breakfast for his family at McDonald’s before reaching the residence – a timeline confirmed by license plate readers, police said.
As the man walked through the front door, he was greeted by the dog, bent down to pet the dog, and got blood on his clothes, police said.
Then the man noticed his wife, according to the charging document. She was allegedly sitting on a couch in the living room, holding a knife.
The man recalled what his wife said next.
“I stabbed our daughter,” the wife allegedly said.
The defendant also mentioned she hurt the family’s dog, according to law enforcement. The dog was found to have cuts on its abdomen.
After that, the man went to his daughter’s bedroom, according to the charging document. There, he found her – lying on her back with eyes agape. The father repeatedly called out to his daughter without response, then returned to the living room and dialed 911.
During the emergency call, the man said his wife expressed a desire to die and began stabbing herself in the chest with the knife, according to the complaint. Meanwhile, the 911 dispatcher told the man to flee – which he did. As he left, the man recalled seeing his wife fling the knife toward the television. After that, the man said his wife took off her clothes, and he could hear her breaking items in the kitchen.
Soon after, police arrived. During the eventual execution of a search warrant, investigators recovered a large stainless steel kitchen knife with a black handle from the living room wall. The knife was covered in what appeared to be blood, according to the charging document.
The family’s dog survived the attack and was taken to a nearby veterinarian, where it was treated for its injuries, police said.
The defendant was arraigned this week and is currently being detained in the George W. Hill Correctional Facility without bail.
Grovola is next slated to appear in court on Jan. 6.
