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Grady Judd says teen accused of murdering his mother also killed his father: 'Violent predator'

By FOX 13 News Staff
Published  September 11, 2024 12:42pm EDT
Polk County
FOX 13 News

Teen accused of murdering his mother

Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd says 17-year-old Collin Griffith stabbed his mother to death. It comes after he was arrested in Oklahoma last year for shooting and killing his father, but charges were dropped as he claimed self-defense.

AUBURNDALE, Fla. - Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd described a 17-year-old as a "psychopath" after he was arrested for killing his mother at his grandmother's home in Auburndale.

According to the Polk County Sheriff’s Office, Collin Griffith, of Port Charlotte, murdered his mother, 39-year-old Catherine Griffith, also of Port Charlotte, in unincorporated Auburndale. Around 6 p.m. on Sunday, deputies said they responded to Collin Griffith's 911 call for help.

He told law enforcement 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.

FULL PRESS CONFERENCE: 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.

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

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.

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 home, according to PCSO. Investigators said witnesses told them that Catherine Griffith repeatedly pled with her son to "let me go."

PCSO says the knife that was found at the scene was 12 inches long with an eight-inch blade.

'Kay,' a resident of the Hamptons community, told FOX 13 she was housesitting for her neighbor, Collin's grandmother, who was away in the Florida Keys. While she was sitting on the front porch, she saw a confrontation happen outside. 

"They were yelling at one another, and he grabbed her and drug her into the house. Like I said, I don't know what happened on the inside. I really don't. I feel so sad for the grandmother. She's a friend of mine and I feel really bad for the whole family." 

According to the sheriff's office, Collin Griffith's grandmother told detectives about multiple instances when her grandson was physically or verbally confrontational with his mother in the past.

His grandmother also told detectives that he was arrested in the shooting death of his father in Oklahoma in February 2023.

"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," said Judd during a press conference on Wednesday.

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

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

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"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 after getting into an argument over chores. After he refused to go back home, his mother went to Auburndale on Sunday.

READ: Man arrested after barricading inside Temple Terrace apartment, trying to start fire: Police

"We receive a 911 call where Colin said, 'I've had a very, very long fight with mom, and she fell on a knife, and she's bleeding from the neck.' Our investigation clearly and unequivocally shows that that circumstance did not occur like that. In fact, he used similar language to when he made the 911 call, what, 18 or 20 months earlier when he shot and killed his father," said Judd.

According to Judd, 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.

"Collin Griffith is a violent predator--he has now killed both his father and his mother. We will hold him accountable in Polk County--we will do everything we can to keep him separated from civil society," shared Judd.

Collin is being charged with first-degree murder (capital felony), kidnapping (F1), and violation of a no-contact order (M2).

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