Florida teen accused of killing mother 1 year after killing dad learns his fate

Teen accused of killing mother found not guilty

FOX 13's Carla Bayron reports on a jury finding Collin Griffith, a 17-year-old boy who was accused of stabbing his mother to death, not guilty of first-degree murder and not guilty of kidnapping.

BARTOW, Fla. - A jury has reached a verdict in the trial of Collin Griffith, a 17-year-old boy accused of stabbing his mother to death a year after he killed his father in Oklahoma.

On Wednesday, a jury found him not guilty of first-degree murder and not guilty of kidnapping.

Collin Griffith was seen hugging his public defense team and then smiling towards his family members, including his aunt and grandmother sitting in the courtroom, who were relieved by the verdict.

In a short statement after the trial, Collin Griffith's Public Defender, Amy Thornhill, said:

"I appreciate all of the attention the jurors paid to what was presented to them. It was a difficult decision and I thank them."

Collin Griffith kills mother

The backstory:

According to the Polk County Sheriff’s Office, Collin Griffth called 911 for help on Sept. 8, 2024.

Law enforcement officers said he told them that he and his mother had gotten into a fight and during the argument, his mother lunged at him with a knife and fell on it, causing a deep stab wound in her neck.

Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd said the 911 operator gave Collin Griffith instructions on life-saving techniques. When Polk County Fire Rescue and deputies responded to Hewlett Dr. in Auburndale, Catherine Griffith was pronounced dead.

Teen accused of murdering his mother in Auburndale

According to the Polk County Sheriff’s Office, a 17-year-old was arrested for killing his mother on Sunday evening. Sheriff Grady Judd said Collin Griffith of Port Charlotte was charged with first-degree murder, kidnapping and violation of no-contact order.

Witnesses told detectives that they saw Collin Griffith and his mother outside the mobile home arguing and that they saw him grab his mother by the hair and drag her inside the house, according to PCSO. Investigators said witnesses told them that Catherine Griffith repeatedly pleaded with her son to "let me go."

According to the sheriff's office, when deputies asked Collin Griffith what happened at the scene, he "became immediately uncooperative" and asked to speak to a lawyer. Detectives said as the investigation continued they noticed inconsistencies between what the teen said in his 911 call and what was discovered at the scene.

Collin Griffth killed both parents

Dig deeper:

A year before the fatal stabbing of his mother, authorities say Collin Griffith shot his father to death.

"Colin said that his dad pulled a knife on him, and he shot and killed his dad. That's right. His father was named Charles. He shot him once in the chest and once in the head, and he claimed self-defense," Judd said during a press conference last September.

Pictured: Collin Griffith. Image is courtesy of the Polk County Sheriff's Office.

According to officials, the Lincoln County Sheriff's Office and the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigations charged him with first-degree murder, but the charges were dropped less than a month later.

The sheriff's office said in March 2023 the teen went to Charlotte County, Florida, to live with his mom.

Baker Act and domestic violence charge

Big picture view:

"He's Baker Acted. So it's September, and as he's getting out of the original Baker Act, he makes a statement that, well, I'll kill myself, or I'll kill my mother by shooting or stabbing her," shared Judd.

Charlotte County Baker Acted him again that same day and kept him for three days, according to authorities.

Deputies said the 17-year-old was also charged with domestic violence battery in November 2023 by the Charlotte County Sheriff's Office after he battered his mother because she was disciplining him and took his video game privileges away.

Days before his mother's death, Collin Griffith ran away from home and went to his grandmother's house in Auburndale after getting into an argument over chores. After he refused to go back home, his mother went to the Auburndale home on September 8, 2024, where she was stabbed to death.

The trial

What they're saying:

During closing arguments, prosecutor Mark Levine said Collin fought with his mother and stabbed her in the neck because he didn't like her disciplining him.

"He showed his intentions by his actions and words and what he said he was going to do," said Levine. "He was going to kill that ‘evil b****’ – his own mom – and so he did."

Collin's public defender said he killed his mother in self-defense after she potentially attacked him with the knife first. She also said there's no evidence she was kept in the house against her will.

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Thornhill painted the picture of a son who was scared of his mother and who was trying to escape from her violent and aggressive behavior, which included allegedly pointing a gun at him during a prior incident.

"You heard him on the body-worn camera footage. 'I don't want to kill her, but if she attacks me I will have to defend myself,'" said Thornhill.

However, during a press conference last September, Judd stated that the Medical Examiner's Office determined that Catherine Griffith died of a deep penetrating knife wound to the neck that is inconsistent with an accidental injury.

The jury began deliberations on Tuesday and on Wednesday they found him not guilty.

After the verdict was announced, Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd issued the following statement:

"Our detectives firmly believe that Collin Griffith murdered his mother. The jury determined that they could not convict him beyond and to the exclusion of all reasonable doubt. During our investigation, detectives found witnesses that believe he also murdered his father in Oklahoma. That investigation is ongoing."

If he was convicted, Griffith faced the possibility of life in prison.

The Source: This story was written with information from the trial of Collin Griffith and previous FOX 13 News reports.

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