Behind the spotlight of police brutality and justice rallies in 2020, a very sinister crime occurred claiming the life of a 70-year-old woman. The woman’s granddaughter was charged with her killing and now, the judge has delivered a verdict determining her fate.
Let’s rewind. Back in February of 2020, police said they arrived at a “chaotic scene” when they responded to a home on the 8500 block of Spotted Deer in San Antonio. Police said Octavian Jones was home getting ready for work when his sister, Tamera Laws, walked in and apologized for something she’d done, per the San Antonio Express-News. Jones then walked into their grandmother’s room and found her, Dorris Ruth Novella, dead on the floor.
Police reports say Novella’s face was bloodied and nearly unrecognizable. Following the autopsy from the medical examiner, police determined Laws choked, stabbed, and repeatedly struck Novella with a hammer resulting in her death, per KSAT’s report.
After being charged with Novella’s murder, Laws insisted she was under mental delusion during the time of the killing. She testified during trial that she became addicted to methamphetamine while working as an escort which resulted in her hearing voices, per News4A.
“I would hear voices in my head telling me that people were trying to kill me. I was like, ‘I know my grandma’s trying to kill me.’ I was afraid that my grandma was going to do witchcraft on me,” she said on the stand.
Additionally, she claimed during trial that a phone call with her father moments before the killing prompted her to commit the act because he told her she was going to “end up chopped up and sent to him in a box by Monday.” She then testified that during the incident, she felt “the energy” on her and believed she had to “beat it out” of her grandmother.
A few medical experts also testified, saying Laws exhibited evidence of a degrading mental state, per the reports. However, prosecutors said she was never reported to have any symptoms while in jail.
There were even more suspicious findings that contradicted Laws’ insanity argument. Experts testified during her trial to finding a strong odor of Pine-Sol coming from the room where Novella was found, per the San Antonio Express-News. They also testified to finding Laws’ DNA on a cleaner bottle found in the room. Prosecutors argued Laws was well aware of what she did, using the expert testimonies to suggest she tried to conceal the crime scene, per the reports.
Laws waived her right to a jury trial leaving her fate up to a judge. Friday, Feb. 28, the Bexar County judge found her guilty of murder, per KSAT. Her sentencing will be scheduled at a later date.
Laws faces life in prison.