3 Imprisoned For Life In Yale Stabbings
PORT HURON (WWJ/AP) - An 18-year-old woman convicted of murdering her father and trying to kill her mother in a knife attack at their Michigan home has been sentenced to life in prison, along with two young men convicted in the case.
Tia Skinner and 19-year-olds Jonathan Kurtz and James Preston were sentenced Friday in St. Clair County Circuit Court in Port Huron.
They were earlier convicted of first-degree murder, attempted murder and conspiracy to murder. The conviction came with mandatory life in prison without parole.
Paul Skinner was stabbed to death and Mara Skinner was seriously wounded -- stabbed 20 times -- in the November attack at the family's home in Yale, about 85 miles northeast of Detroit.
While viewing a slide show presentation of family photos, those in the courtroom Friday heard Mara Skinner's victim impact statement:
"We were awakened by you, Johnathan and James, wearing masks and baring knives. You savagely and barbarically stabbed us," she said.
"Tia, you've completely puzzled me. I thought I knew you. I thought we shared the same feelings, values, loves and life. But I guess I never really knew you at all, and that's heartbreaking," Mara Skinner said.
Friday, Tia apologized in court. Prosecutors said she was angry at her parents for forbidding her from dating Kurtz and for confiscating her cell phone.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
