A Sugar Notch man will stand trial on criminal homicide charges alleging he murdered his mother in a drug-induced haze, a magistrate ruled Thursday.
Erik M. Watkins, 39, is accused of killing his mother, 60-year-old Patricia Watkins, during an attack at their home at 301 Maffett St. early the morning of Dec. 13.
Police said Erik Watkins admitted he woke up after smoking marijuana and heard a âhigher powerâ telling him to attack his mother. Erik Watkins said he blacked out during the assault but remembered striking his mother in the face repeatedly with his hands and feet, according to police.
Investigators found Patricia Watkins dead in a bathtub, her face âcaved inâ and barely recognizable.
Sixteen people were victims of homicide in Luzerne County in 2020, according to the Luzerne County Coronerâs Office.
The yearâs cases included three people killed by family members, a shooting during a robbery and a suspect who was shot by the police.
Guns were the preferred method of committing homicide, accounting for 11 of the cases. Physical assault was the cause of death in three of the cases, and another case was attributed to injuries sustained in a car crash.
The number of homicides was up from the 12 people who were mortally wounded in Luzerne County in 2019, but was comparable to the total in other years â the county had 15 homicides in 2018, 16 in 2017 and 12 in 2016.
The homicide occurred Sunday night in Sugar Notch. Author: Brit Purdy Updated: 9:24 PM EST December 13, 2020
A neighbor recalls a frantic knock at his door and a neighbor begging to use his phone. At that hour of the morning, he would never just pop over, but he was actually kind of going nuts. He was hysterical.
That s what alerted the neighbor to the chaos going on inside a house along Maffett Street in Sugar Notch.
The man at his door said his brother, Erik Watkins, 39, was staying with them. He explained how Watkins had become violent and beaten their mother, then locked them and their dog in a bathroom.
39-year-old man charged in beating death of his mother in Luzerne County
Updated Dec 14, 2020;
A 39-year-old Luzerne County man is behind bars, accused of killing his mother early Sunday.
Patricia Watkins, 60, died from injuries she suffered during a domestic assault at her Sugar Notch home just before 2 a.m. Sunday, WBRE/WYOU is reporting.
Her son, Erik Watkins, 39, has been charged with criminal homicide, according to reports.
State police are investigating, and details were limited.
But neighbor Brian Zaboski told WNEP that Erik Watkins had just moved back into the home with his mother and brother.
Zaboski was awakened by a frantic knock on his door early Sunday. It was the brother, begging to use the phone and telling him that Eric Watkins had become violent and locked him, their mother and dog in the bathroom, reports indicate. He escaped through a window to make the call, but by the time the police arrived, it was too late, WNEP reports.
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