By Hayes Hickman
The Knoxville News-Sentinel
KNOXVILLE — Arrest warrants filed in a near-fatal West Knox County stabbing detail the lengths to which a woman tried to kill her mother, who she said she believed to be the anti-Christ.
Katie Elizabeth Nichols, 31, remained jailed Wednesday on charges of attempted first-degree murder and especially aggravated kidnapping for allegedly stabbing her 61-year-old mother multiple times in a bizarre episode early Tuesday.
Laurie Nichols later told authorities she was lying in her bedroom at Sunchase Apartments about 3:40 a.m. when her daughter entered the apartment and attacked her.
“The defendant came into her bedroom, climbed on top of her and attempted to put a sock in her mouth, telling her to ‘eat it,’ and that she was going to shove it down her throat,” arrest warrants state.
Katie Nichols allegedly hid her mother’s cellphone from her and attempted to tie her up.
“The victim stated that the defendant repeatedly told her that she wanted to kill her,” according to warrants. “The victim struggled with the defendant until they ended up on the bedroom floor where the defendant got on top of the victim and strangled the victim until she lost consciousness.”
Laurie Nichols was stabbed with a small kitchen knife in her chest, with a large kitchen knife in her abdomen and her neck was cut with a pair of scissors, the warrants state.
A neighbor heard the woman’s screams and called E-911.
The victim was listed in serious condition at the University of Tennessee Medical Center on Wednesday afternoon.
Katie Elizabeth Nichols was taken into custody shortly after she returned to the apartment complex Tuesday afternoon. A WVLT, Channel 8, news crew at the scene encountered her and, while interviewing the suspect, contacted E-911.
According to WVLT, Katie Nichols claimed she was under the spell of a satanic cult, and that her mother was the “ringleader.”
Katie Nichols and her daughter had been living with Laurie Nichols at the apartment complex until the two moved out after a disagreement last week, according to the Knox County Sheriff’s Office.
The state Department of Children’s Services placed Katie Nichols’ daughter with another relative.
A court date has not been set in the case yet.
More details as they develop online and in Thursday’s News Sentinel.
Copyright 2014 the Knoxville News-Sentinel