Mother fatally stabbed in home
Police charge her daughter, 21, for slaying; officials say motive still unknown
PERKIOMEN » A 21-year-old woman has been charged with the brutal stabbing death of her mother inside the township home they shared.
The daughter, Elena C. HouseHay, dialed 911 at 3:18 a.m. Friday to report the stabbing of her mother, AnnetteE. House, 54, but initially blamed the attack on a male intruder she said she saw fleeing the home, according to authorities.
After labeling the daughter “a person of interest” and interviewing her throughout the day, state police and the Montgomery County District Attorney’s Office announced Friday evening they have charged House-Hay with the stabbing death of her mother.
Dr. Khalil Wardak of the Montgomery County Coroner’s Office performed an autopsy on Annette House on Friday and determined thewoman died as a result of multiple stab wounds. The coroner ruled the manner of death as homicide.
House-Hay is charged with murder of the first degree; mur---
der in the third degree; voluntary manslaughter; and possession of instruments of a crime.
Police would not speculate on a motive for the killing, but in court papers released Friday night, police stated there were mental health issues involving the daughter.
The attack took place inside the home the two women shared in the 400 block of Abbey Lane in Perkiomen Township. House-Hay initially told police shewas asleep when she heard her mother scream, police said. The daughter then said she saw “a male in a gray sweatshirt flee from the scene,” but could not provide further details, according to authorities.
Limerick Township police initially arrived at the house, followed shortly by troopers from the State Police barracks at Skippack. Police found Annette House unresponsive on the second-floor bedroom with a wooden-handled kitchen knife in her chest, according to the D.A.’s office.
Annette House was pronounced dead at the scene by the Montgomery County Coroner’s Office.
House-Hay gave conflicting accounts to various police officers and troopers about what occurred prior to her mother being stabbed, according to court papers. One of the state troopers who interviewed her observed what appeared to be blood on House-Hay’s clothing in the areas of her left chest, and left thigh, arms and hands, court papers state. The trooper also observed a laceration on House-Hay’s left hand which was wrapped in a blood-soaked bandage, court papers state.
At one point during the interview, House-Hay told a trooper that she had a fight with her mother earlier in the night regarding HouseHay’s treatment for bipolar disorder, according to the Affidavit of ProbableCause.
When a trooper asked her what happened to her hand, House-Hay responded, “I tried to help her, she tried to grab me,” according to court papers.
Authorities, including Pennsylvania State Police units from Skippack station, a forensic unit from Pennsylvania State Police Philadelphia and detectives with the Montgomery County District Attorney’s office, remained on the scene for most of the day Friday conducting the investigation.
Police stated in court papers they found no signs of a struggle, theft or burglary inside the home. Police also said the knife found sticking from Annette House’s chest “appeared to be consistent with knives located inside a knife block in the kitchen” of the home the two women shared, according to court papers.
At an impromptu press conference earlier in the day, State Trooper Timothy Greene said authorities were treating the death as “suspicious” and questioning the woman’s daughter.
“We do have a person of interest. I just want to stress to the community that they are safe,” Greene told reporters gathered outside the victim’s home. “Like I said, we do have a person of interest. Once the autopsy is complete, wewill be able to tell the cause of death and then go from there.”
House-Hay was arraigned by District Judge Albert Augustine on Friday and was remanded to the Montgomery County Correctional Facility in Eagleville.
A preliminary hearing is scheduled for 10 a.m. on Monday, July 31, before Judge Augustine in Skippack.
The arrest was made as the result of a joint investigation by State Police at Skippack and the Montgomery County Detective Bureau.
The home is located just off of Township Line Road in the Greenshire Estates development in Perkiomen Township.
“Like I said, we do have a person of interest. Once the autopsy is complete, wewill be able to tell the cause of death and then go from there.” State Trooper Timothy Greene