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Blansett sentenced to 25 years to life for murder of her son

By Cristina Janney - Wellington Daily News

December 3, 2015

Lindsey Nicole Blansett, 33, of Wellington was sentenced today to 25 years to life in the 2014 slaying of her 10-year-old son, Caleb.

Blansett was eligible for the hard 50 sentence, which would have required her to serve at least 50 years before she would be eligible for parole.

Sumner County District Court Judge William Mott ruled Blansett’s lack of prior criminal history, her mental illness and acceptance of responsibility for the crime were mitigating circumstances that lead to the lesser sentence.

During Blansett’s trial in October, two mental health professionals testified Blansett was delusional when she beat her young son with a rock and stabbed him to death with a knife while he lay in bed.

The experts said Blansett suffered from bipolar disorder, anxiety and temporary psychosis due to extreme stress.

Blansett told the first officer that arrived on the scene that she was trying to save Caleb from a life of suffering.

Prosecutor Kerwin Spencer argued unsuccessfully that Blansett was aware of the implications of her actions at the time she committed the crime and therefore should receive the hard 50 sentence.

He pointed to the Blansett’s 911 call immediately after the murder in which she stated, “I am never going to get out of jail. You are going to have to live with your dad.”

Blansett was also convicted of one count of aggravated battery for the beating of her son. Spencer argued that sentence should run consecutively to the life sentence because of the fear Blansett inflicted on her son during the incident.

In a statement to police, Blansett said Caleb at one point woke up and asked his mother to stop hurting him. Blansett then proceeded to stab her son to death.

The judge sentenced Blansett to serve 11 months in prison for the assault charge to run concurrently to her life sentence.

Blansett has been in jail since the murder and will be given credit for time served. Spencer said she would be transferred to the Kansas Department of Corrections within the next two to three weeks to begin serving her sentence.

Blansett’s attorney Mike Brown informed the court of his intent to file an appeal. The judge set an appeal bond at $2 million.

Spencer in a press conference after the sentencing said he was disappointed the judge did not impose the hard 50 sentence but 25 years to life is still a significant sentence.

“I’ve done my job,” Spencer said.

Prior to taking up the sentencing, Mott heard motions for a new trial, a mistrial and a judgment for an acquittal based on lack of evidence. All three motions were denied.

Jury finds Wellington mom guilty of murder in stabbing of 10-year-old son

By Matt Riedl - The Wichita Eagle

October 27, 2015

A Sumner County jury found Lindsey Nicole Blansett guilty of murder in the December death of her 10-year-old son.

Blansett was found guilty of first-degree, premeditated murder after stabbing her son at their Wellington home. An autopsy report showed seven stab wounds to her son Caleb’s chest, said Kerwin Spencer, Sumner County attorney.

Jurors reached a verdict at around 4 p.m. on Tuesday after deliberating for roughly 6.5 hours since Monday, Spencer said.

They concluded that, shortly before midnight on Dec. 14, Blansett entered her son’s room with a knife and a rock.

She hit him over the head with the rock, after which Caleb woke up and said, “Mom, stop,” Spencer said.

She then stabbed him multiple times until he was dead, Spencer said.

For the first-degree murder charge, Spencer said, prosecutors had to prove Blansett acted intentionally to kill her son.

“A good portion of the testimony that happened yesterday dealt with psychological examinations of her, and so a good part of the deliberations today I’m sure dealt with whether or not she suffered from mental illness and, if she did, whether or not that kept her from being able to act intentionally,” Spencer said. “They obviously came to the conclusion ... even if she was mentally ill, that did not keep her from acting intentionally – she acted with premeditation.”

For the aggravated assault charge, Spencer said, prosecutors had to prove Blansett “knowingly caused her son to be in fear from a deadly weapon.”

An approximately 30-minute video of three interviews Blansett did with police investigators was shown to jurors, Spencer said. In the first interview, Blansett confessed to using a knife. In the second interview, she mentioned the rock, Spencer said. In the final interview, she said her son woke up after she hit him with a rock and said, “Mom, stop,” before Blansett stabbed him, Spencer said.

“She came up with the goal that she was going to kill her son to save him from further suffering in his life, and she took actions consistent with that goal,” he said. “That’s the way the evidence came out, and that’s what the jury decided happened.”

A message left with Blansett’s attorney was unanswered as of Tuesday evening.

Blansett is eligible for a Hard 50 sentence, which means she would have to serve 50 years before asking for parole for the first time, Spencer said. She could also receive a Hard 25 sentence, he said.

In May, Blansett was found mentally fit to stand trial in Sumner County.

She called 911 after stabbing her son, saying she “was saving him from the pain that was coming.”

Blansett trial now in hands of jury

By Derrick Mead - Wellington Daily News

October 26, 2015

Lindsey Nicole Blansett got the chance to have her case heard on Monday at the Sumner County Courthouse.

Blansett, 33, of Wellington, is accused of beating her son, Caleb, with a rock, and stabbing him to death with a knife.

After the prosecution sent 17 witnesses to the stand during the first two days of the trial, Blansett’s defense attorney, Michael Brown, took his turn next.

While Brown called just three witnesses on Monday morning, it was Dr. Jared Steffen whose testimony was the focal point of the defense’s case that Blansett suffers from a mental illness and was mentally ill at the time of the attack.

Dr. Steffen, who interviewed Blansett for a total of six to seven hours, testified that he made several observations of Blansett and performed five different psychological tests on her. He also stated that she did not appear evasive during that time, and that the possibility that Blansett was making up any of her symptoms was “highly unlikely.”

Dr. Steffen also stated that about one month prior to the incident, Blansett became more paranoid of her mother and stepfather. She soon became convinced that Caleb was being sexually abused, which caused her to remember her own sexual abuse as a child.

“It was unclear to me whether she was actually sexually abused as a child,” Steffen testified.

Brown asked Steffen whether he believed Blansett to be mentally ill.

“She flatly believes she doesn’t have a mental illness,” Steffen said of Blansett.

But his diagnosis?

“Her behavior is consistent with bipolar disorder,” he said.

After Steffen’s testimony, the defense rested its case and would be followed by a rebuttal witness for the prosecution after the lunch recess.

At 11:20 a.m., prior to the lunch recess, Blansett, who wore a purple sweater, spoke aloud for the first time during the proceedings.

When asked if she wanted to testify, after conferring with Brown, Blansett told Judge R. Scott McQuin: “I don’t want to.”

After the recess, the prosecution called Dr. Roy Daum, a psychologist at Larned State Hospital, upon reconvening.

Daum testified that Blansett scored a perfect 30 of 30 on one psychological evaluation he performed on her on Sept. 23 of this year.

However, Daum, too, believed that Blansett suffered from a mental illness — although his diagnosis differed from Steffen’s.

“It is apparent to me that Ms. Blansett had a brief psychotic episode,” Daum testified Monday.

Daum’s diagnosis came after eight hours of interviews with Blansett — two hours each on four separate occasions.

“She showed no erratic behaviors in eight hours of interviews,” Daum said.

Daum also testified that she exhibit no self-harming behaviors and showed no difficulty understanding interview questions.

On cross-examination from Mr. Brown, Daum acknowledged that his diagnosis of a “brief psychotic episode” would have been different if it had lasted longer than 30 days. He stated that a brief psychotic episode is something that generally lasts less than 30 days, and since he didn’t interview her until months later, it was not apparent then.

After a total six separate recesses during the day, both sides finally rested and jury instructions began.

The jury was ultimately told they have a few choices — First degree murder: guilty or not guilty; second degree murder: guilty or not guilty; aggravated assault: guilty or not guilty. In addition, if the jury finds Blansett to be guilty of murder in the second degree, they must then answer a question as to whether she is guilty because of a mental illness. If found guilty on second-degree murder because of a mental inability to formulate intent or premeditation, she would be sent to a mental hospital rather than prison.

Each side was given 30 minutes to give their closing arguments, with the state starting and finishing with 15 minutes on either side of the defense, due to shouldering the burden of proof.

Prosecutor, Kerwin Spencer, told the jury that Blansett absolutely formulated a plan — and even a backup plan, and carried it out.

“She had enough wherewithal to realize that (rock) didn’t do the job — the light went on to say it didn’t work and she needed an alternative plan,” Spencer said.

“By her own admission, she came up with a goal that she was going to kill him in order to protect him from other, more tragic things,” Spencer added.

Brown used his closing arguments to again impress upon the jury the notion that Blansett was mentally ill.

“She felt like she was in a hypnotized state,” Brown said.

He also brought up a note Blansett wrote on Dec. 12, in an attempt to give away her children.

“Please love them with all your heart and don’t let them forget me,” Blansett wrote in the note, two days before killing her 10-year old son, Caleb.

In his final closing arguments, Spencer once again pointed to premeditation.

“Ms. Blansett knew what she was doing when she picked up a knife and carried it around,” Spencer said.

“The best evidence of premeditation? She stabbed Caleb not one, not two or three, but seven times. She had to use two hands to plunge the knife in each time,” he reminded the jury.

Following closing arguments, the case was handed over to the jury, who selected a foreman for going home for the evening. They are scheduled to reconvene for deliberations, beginning at 9 a.m. tomorrow.

Blansett trial continues, state rests

By Derrick Mead - Wellington Daily News

October 23, 2015

Day two of the trial against Lindsey Nicole Blansett got underway at 9:21 a.m. Thursday morning and ended earlier than expected, as jurors were sent home for the weekend at 3:40 p.m.

After 11 witnesses took the stand Wednesday, Thursday saw testimonies from just six new witnesses.

Lieutenant Dan Thompson of the Wellington PD began the morning back on the stand, where he was when the proceedings came to a close the day before. He was later recalled, taking the stand for a third time in total, mostly to go over a diagram of the Blansett home shown on the courtroom projector.

Thompson also stated early on that the rock used to hit Caleb weighed 11.2 pounds.

Some in-depth testimony was given by James Newman, a forensic scientist for the KBI. Newman provided extensive DNA analysis from the scene of the crime.

Detective Bobby Wilson, of the Wellington PD, was the primary witness on the day, as his testimony lasted two hours and 17 minutes in total, spanning parts of the late morning and early afternoon.

During Wilson’s time on the stand, defense attorney Michael Brown made no less than 12 different objections.

Wilson, who has been with the WPD for 19 years and a detective for four of those years, lives across the street from the Blansett house.

“I just really wish you would’ve come and knocked on my door,” Wilson told Blansett during a 27-minute video recording interview from Dec. 15, 2014 — the day following the incident. The video was played in full for the courtroom. That interview was one of four conducted by Wilson, totaling about 9.5 hours, he said.

“I completely lost it... I just lost my mind,” Blansett told Wilson on the video. She repeatedly stating that she didn’t know what she was doing, but knew it was wrong as soon as she’d hit Caleb.

She also stated that bipolar disease runs in her family, although she’d never been diagnosed. Brown used parts of his cross-examination and redirection at times to mount a mental health defense.

During Brown’s cross, Wilson testified that Blansett had visited Cowley County Mental Health in the past, although no official evaluation was done.

Blansett acquaintance Ivan Scott testified that Blansett’s ex, Clint, wanted Nicole to seek mental health assistance, something she was reluctant to do, but agreed in hopes of reconciling. Scott also said Blansett was “acting paranoid” while at his house in Belle Plaine on Dec. 13 — the evening before the incident.

For the second straight day, Blansett did not react during any of the testimony. She did not look up at the screen for the viewing of the video or when a photo was shown of her bloody hands and socks.

At 3:34 p.m., the state rested its case. After asking the jury to be dismissed, Brown made a motion for acquittal and asked the court to discharge his client. Judge McQuin denied the motion, stating he felt there was sufficient evidence to continue.

Both sides acknowledged the trial is going faster than planned so far. As the defense has witnesses not ready until Monday, McQuin excused the jury until Monday.

“It looks like we may get the case to you Monday, but certainly Tuesday,” McQuin told the jury.

Court will reconvene at 9 a.m. Monday.

Blansett murder trial underway

By Derrick Mead - Wellington Daily News

October 22, 2015

Testimonies from eleven different people were heard on day one of the murder trial of Lindsey Nicole Blansett on Wednesday afternoon at the Sumner County Courthouse in Wellington.

Blansett is accused of stabbing her 10-year old son, Caleb, to death with a knife, and beating him with a rock.

After jury selection wrapped up in the morning, opening statements were given beginning at 1:15 p.m. at the Sumner County Courthouse.

The jury is made up of 14 people — 12 jurors and two alternates, although the alternates will not be notified until it is time for deliberations. Of the 14, nine are men and five are women.

During prosecutor Kerwin Spencer’s opening statements, which lasted about 10 minutes, he laid out the events on the night in question, and even said Blansett had reported that Caleb woke up after being hit with the rock, which fractured his skull, but was determined to not be fatal itself.

Spencer explained that according to Blansett, Caleb had awaken after being struck with the rock, said “Mommy, stop,” but that she ‘had to finish what she started.’

Defense attorney Michael Brown stood before the jury in his opening statements after Spencer gave his own, and asked the jury to consider Blansett’s state of mind.

“I can’t stand up here and tell you this didn’t happen,” Brown said.

“You’re going to have to wrestle with the question ‘Why would anyone in their right mind do this to their child?’” Brown told the jury.

Brown also pointed to eventual testimony by officer Sara Owens, stating that Blansett was “in a daze” on the night in question.

Deputy medical examiner, Dr. Timothy Gorrill, described 11 different graphic photos that were shown to the jury, depicting Caleb and his wounds following the incident.

The jury also listened to the 911 tape from the night of Dec. 14, 2014. The call came in at 11:51 p.m. that night, and was answered by 911 dispatcher, Todd Pettigrew, who also testified on Wednesday.

Upon taking the call, Pettigrew contacted Sergeant Keith Westmoreland, who was also one of the 11 people to testify.

“There was some statements made that they’d definitely want to hear,” Pettigrew recalled from that night.

“I’m never going to get out of jail; never,” Blansett told Pettigrew on the tape.

She also said she thought someone was coming into the house and she thought she was saving Caleb from the pain that was coming.

On cross-examination from Brown, Westmoreland reported that after the incident, while seated on the couch inside their home, Blansett told her nine-year old daughter “I told you I was having a mental breakdown.”

The longest testimony of the day belonged to Lieutenant Dan Thompson of the Wellington Police Department, who took the stand for 58 minutes before the court adjourned for evening recess.

Thompson displayed the rock and the knife allegedly used in the incident for the jury to see.

The court headed to recent just a couple minutes before 5 p.m. Judge R. Scott McQuin said the court would reconvene at 9 a.m. Thursday, with Brown slated to cross-examine Lieutenant Dan Thompson.

Blansett, seated next to her attorney, Mr. Brown, said nothing throughout the proceedings. She wore a brown sweater and a plaid dress. She did not react to any of the testimony, the 911 audio, or any of the images displayed for the jury.

It is not yet known whether Blansett will testify.

Wellington mother accused in son’s murder to be evaluated at Larned hospital

By Amy Renee Leiker - The Wichita Eagle

January 29, 2015

A Wellington mother accused of murdering her 10-year-old son will undergo a competency evaluation at Larned State Hospital, likely within 90 days, according to the Sumner County Attorney’s Office.

Sumner County District Court Judge R. Scott McQuin on Thursday ordered that the evaluation for 33-year-old Lindsey Nicole Blansett take place in Larned after local provider Sumner County Mental Health recommended it be completed at the state-run facility, the attorney’s office said.

Blansett’s next hearing, a status conference, is scheduled for Feb. 26. The attorney’s office said the court will hold the proceeding to check the progress of the competency evaluation.

It had not yet been scheduled Thursday afternoon.

Blansett is charged with first-degree murder in the stabbing death of her son, Caleb, on Dec. 14 at their Wellington home. According to the criminal complaint filed in the case, Blansett decided that Caleb’s “life would be full of suffering and it would be better for him to go to heaven tonight” so she went into his bedroom, struck him with a rock and stabbed him multiple times with a knife.

She then called 911.

In his request last month for the competency exam, court-appointed defense attorney Mike Brown wrote that he had “a good faith basis” to think Blansett may be incompetent to stand trial. The judge ordered the evaluation on Jan. 8.

Blansett remained in Sumner County Jail on Thursday in lieu of $500,000 bond.

In court document, Wellington detective describes scene of boy’s killing

By Rick Plumlee - The Wichita Eagle

December 30, 2014

A Wellington police detective described in a court document a bloody scene in the killing of a 10-year-old boy, allegedly by his mother.

Bobby Wilson, writing in the first person, said he wanted to “bag the mother’s hands and get her socks off her feet and into evidence.”

“The socks were soaked in blood,” he added, “and I did not want to have her walking around with them.”

Lindsey Nicole Blansett, 33, has been charged with first-degree murder in the stabbing death of her son, Caleb, shortly before midnight on Dec. 14 at their Wellington home.

The Eagle, through its attorney, Lyndon Vix, requested the release of the case’s probable cause affidavit, a court document that is used to justify the arrest and charging of a crime suspect.

Sumner County District Court Judge R. Scott McQuin released the document Tuesday over the objections of Blansett’s attorney, Mike Brown.

The affidavit was heavily redacted. It had a disclaimer at the end that said: “A more detailed report will follow along with other officers involved. This is a starting point so charges can be filed by the County Attorney.”

Blansett, who goes by Nicole, called 911 to report she had stabbed her son. In a recorded tape of that call, she told the dispatcher, “I thought someone was coming in to get us.”

A criminal complaint in the case said Blansett decided that Caleb’s “life would be full of suffering and it would be better for him to go to heaven tonight.” She went into his bedroom, struck him with a rock and stabbed him multiple times with a knife, the complaint said.

Her 9-year-old daughter also was in the house at the time of the stabbing. The girl was not injured.

Wilson wrote that Nicole Blansett stayed overnight Dec. 13 at a house in Belle Plaine.

“She said that she was worried about some people coming over to her house and causing problems,” Wilson wrote. “She had called the police on them.”

The redacted affidavit contains brief references to Clint Blansett. He is the children’s father and was married to Nicole Blansett from 2000 to 2013.

“She said that she was up around (7 a.m., Dec. 14),” Wilson wrote. “She advised that she spoke with Clint at (1 p.m.). She wanted to talk about the kids. She said that she spoke with Clint and made arrangements for him to pick the kids up the next morning and take them to school.”

In the affidavit, Wilson also said that it appeared Caleb had been “stabbed in his bed while it appeared that he had been sleeping.”

Wilson took pictures of Nicole Blansett’s hands and feet and three photos of the bedroom and Caleb.

The detective drove Blansett to the police station, where he collected samples of the blood on her hands and face.

On Monday, Brown filed a court document requesting an evaluation of Blansett’s competency to stand trial, Sumner County Attorney Kerwin Spencer said. McQuin will rule on that request at a hearing on Jan. 8.

Wellington mother on 911 recording: ‘I’m never going to get out of jail’

By Rick Plumlee - The Wichita Eagle

December 18, 2014

A mother who called 911 to report that she had stabbed her 10-year-old son said between sobs: “I’m never going to get out of jail. Never.”

In an apparent attempt to explain the stabbing, Lindsey Nicole Blansett also said during the recorded call: “I thought I was saving him from the pain that was coming.”

Blansett, 33, has been charged with first-degree murder in the death of her son, Caleb. She appeared in court Thursday for a scheduling hearing at the Sumner County Courthouse, hands cuffed in front of her and wearing an orange jail jumpsuit.

Judge William Mott granted court-appointed defense attorney Mike Brown’s request to set Blansett’s next court date for 1:30 p.m. Jan. 8, to give him more time to prepare.

At that time, Brown is expected to request a preliminary hearing or an evaluation of Blansett’s competency to stand trial.

Also Thursday, the Kansas Department for Children and Families confirmed that it had received a report of non-abuse neglect with regard to the family on Dec. 9 – five days before Blansett allegedly killed her son Sunday night at their home.

The DCF said those allegations were not against the mother but that the report warranted further investigation. The agency said it had received two other reports on the family, including one in May regarding medical neglect that was not substantiated.

‘Oh God, why?’

The criminal complaint said that Blansett went into Caleb’s bedroom shortly before midnight Sunday, struck him with a rock and “stabbed him with a knife multiple times until he was dead.”

Blansett, who goes by Nicole, called 911 and told the dispatcher, “Hi, this is Nicole Blansett. I just stabbed my son.”

Dispatcher: “I’m sorry?”

“I just stabbed my son,” she repeated. “I thought someone was coming in to get us.”

Moments later she again told the dispatcher that she had stabbed Caleb in the chest several times and said, “I thought someone was coming in.”

While the dispatcher briefly put Blansett on hold, she could be heard saying in a very loud voice, “Because I thought I was saving him from the pain that was coming.”

The criminal complaint said Blansett had decided that Caleb’s “life would be full of suffering and it would be better for him to go to heaven tonight.”

Some of her neighbors had said the unemployed single mother was despondent about not having enough money to pay bills or provide Christmas presents for her children. Blansett’s daughter, 9, also was in the house at the time of Sunday’s incident, Sumner County Attorney Kerwin Spencer said.

Nicole and Clint Blansett were divorced about a year ago. She was given residential custody of Caleb and their daughter.

At one point in the 911 call, Blansett calmly spelled her last name. She also said during the call, “Oh God, why? Why?”

Blansett is being held in the Sumner County Jail on a $500,000 bond. In an e-mail, Sheriff Darren Chambers said he couldn’t say whether she was on suicide watch.

“What I can say is that she is not in the general population and is under 24 hours video observation,” he said, “as well as regular physical checks.”

Funeral services for Caleb Blansett are planned for 3 p.m. Saturday at First Christian Church in Wellington. A visitation is scheduled for 1 to 8 p.m. Friday at Day Funeral Home.

It’s not known whether Nicole Blansett will attend the funeral.

“She will not be attending the funeral unless I’m served a court order mandating she attend,” Chambers said.

Brown didn’t immediately return phone calls about whether he was seeking a court order.

An autopsy report hasn’t been completed, said Spencer, the county attorney.

Neglect reports

As for the DCF report for non-abuse neglect, agency spokeswoman Theresa Freed said she couldn’t say who made the complaint Dec. 9 or whom the allegations were against.

Non-abuse neglect covers such things as caretakers’ inability to cope, a child’s behavior problem, drug abuse, not attending school and parent-child conflict, according to the DCF’s website.

DCF received a report on May 1 of Caleb being neglected, according to a timeline provided by the agency.

A case worker didn’t find Caleb at his school the next day. The worker went to Blansett’s home, in the 900 block of West Seventh, but was told the child was in Wichita. The mother was offered services, the report said, but she declined.

The report concluded that allegations of medical neglect were unsubstantiated.

On June 21, 2012 – about 18 months before the Blansetts divorced – DCF said it received allegations of family neglect. The agency said it conducted background checks on the mother and children, then closed the case the next day.

No other information was provided by DCF.

In a statement from DCF Secretary Phyllis Gilmore, she said: “As with any child death, we are deeply saddened by this news. We are carefully reviewing this incident and our history with this family. Our hearts go out to anyone affected by this unthinkable tragedy.”

Nicole Blansett, who married Clint Blansett in 2000 in Montague, Texas, filed for divorce in February 2013, saying the two were incompatible. In the divorce filings, he was identified as Christopher C. Blansett, although he goes by Clint.

At the time, she was unemployed and attending college in the summer, and he was employed by a business based in Scott, La., according to a domestic relations affidavit filed in court. His gross annual income at the time was $52,212.

She had $10 in her checking account and $10 in a savings account, according to the affidavit. For monthly expenses, she included rent of $375, food costs of $500 and a $325 car payment.

She had been in financial trouble before, according to a petition in Sumner County District Court filed on Aug. 10, 2011. She gave two worthless checks, one for $17.13, the other for $24.73, the petition said.

By Feb. 9, 2012, the case had resulted in a $553 judgment against her, and a garnishment order was issued to a Wellington business, a court document said.

A divorce decree on Dec. 20, 2013, said the couple didn’t own any real estate. Among the personal property she was awarded: furniture, appliances, household goods and a 2002 Jeep Liberty, on which she owed money.

A judge ordered him to pay “maintenance” of $500 a month and $898 a month in child support. He also was responsible for health coverage for the children. The judge granted her a judgment for $4,453.59 for unpaid temporary child support and maintenance through Dec. 20, 2013, according to the divorce decree.

One of the first things stated in the decree is that both parties were to “Put the best interests of the children first.”

Nicole Blansett received residential custody of the children. Clint Blansett was to receive “parenting time as the parties can agree to,” according to the parenting plan filed in court.

Contributing: Tim Potter of The Eagle

Mother, 33, 'stabbed son, 10, and beat him to death with a rock because she thought it would be better for him to go to heaven than to face the world's problems'

• Lindsey Blansett 'stabbed her son Caleb in the chest and beat him with a rock after he went to bed at their Kansas home on Sunday night'

• Police say she thought his life would be full of suffering so 'he would be better off in heaven'

• She was arrested at the home and charged with first-degree murder

By Lydia Warren for MailOnline

December 16, 2014

A mother stabbed her 10-year-old son in the chest and beat him to death with a rock while he was in bed because she thought he 'would be better off in heaven', police have said.

Officers were called to Lindsey Nicole Blansett's home in Wellington, Kansas around 11.45pm on Sunday and when they arrived, her son Caleb was dead. She was taken into custody.

Police believe the 33-year-old mother attacked her son because she thought his life would be full of suffering, the Wellington Daily News reported.

She 'decided the boy would be better off in heaven than to face the world’s problems', according to a criminal complaint in Sumner County.

So after her son went to bed, she grabbed a knife and a rock and attacked him with both, killing him. An autopsy to determine his exact cause of death is underway.

Caleb's nine-year-old sister was also in the home at the time he was killed but she was unharmed and is now with other relatives.

Blansett has been booked into the Sumner County Jail and has been charged with first-degree murder. Authorities say she unlawfully, intentionally and with premeditation killed her son.

She remains in jail on $500,000 bond and has an appearance scheduled in Sumner County District Court on Thursday, KAKE reported.

If convicted of first-degree murder, she faces life in prison.

Wellington Police Chief Tracy Heath said he was not aware of drugs being involved in the incident, and said are no other suspects.

Grief counselors and crisis professionals are on hand at Lincoln Elementary School, where the 10-year-old was in the fourth grade.

Neighbors expressed their shock, saying they never saw any signs of abuse in the home.

'Me and her talked, she was a nice lady,' neighbor Shae Hutton told KWCH. 'She didn't seem like she was capable of killing her own son.'

Friend Kayle Black, whose children played with Blansett's, added: 'He is only ten-years old, he was just a kid. As parents we are suppose to be their protectors.'