Pregnant Pembroke Pines woman arrested for attempted murder of boyfriend, unborn child
PEMBROKE PINES — A pregnant woman is behind bars after she allegedly tried to kill her unborn child and her baby's father on Sunday.
Debra Whiteman, 24, was arrested Sunday evening on attempted murder and aggravated battery charges.
According to an arrest affidavit and press release, Pembroke Pines Police officers responded to reports of a domestic disturbance at a home in the area of NW 88th Avenue and NW 8th Street. Upon arrival, the adult victim told police that he was stabbed by his girlfriend — later identified as Whiteman.
During the investigation, it was revealed that the victim and Whiteman had been in a romantic relationship for the last year and had lived together for the last eight months with other family members. According to the press release, Whiteman is currently 39-weeks pregnant and that the victim is the baby's father.
Over the last two to three months, Whiteman allegedly attempted to terminate her own pregnancy by taking pills, drinking alcohol and punching herself in the stomach, the press release stated.
On Sunday, Whiteman and the victim got into an argument, leading her to threaten to leave the house to harm the unborn child. The victim told her that she was not allowed to leave before going into his bedroom to take a nap.
While the victim was sleeping, Whiteman walked into the bedroom, holding a black folding knife, and approached the victim as he laid asleep before pressing the knife into his stomach below his belly button. The action woke the victim up and he watched Whiteman stabbing him, leaving him with a 1.5-inch laceration, the arrest affidavit stated.
The victim then called for help from one of the family members and attempted to grab for Whiteman's hand to disarm her. She tried to stab him again with more force; however, he was able to control her and then punched her in the face.
When one of the family members came into the room, they observed the victim holding Whiteman while she still had the knife. The family member was then able to disarm Whiteman before calling 911, and left the knife on the kitchen table.
The victim was transported to a local hospital for the laceration, which was deemed non-life threatening. Meanwhile, Whiteman was transported to another local hospital and is currently under the Broward Sheriff's Office's supervision.