Charges: Terrion Sherman Brutally Murdered Abigail Simpson In Front Of Toddler In St. Paul Apartment
MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) -- Terrion Sherman, 23, is charged with second-degree murder in connection to the brutal death of 21-year-old Abigail Simpson inside her St. Paul apartment.
According to the criminal complaint, officers arrived just after midnight Wednesday to the 300 block of Pierce Street in the Union Park neighborhood on a report of a domestic disturbance.
Officers entered the building and headed up to the apartment in question. As they approached, they heard stomping, and a man yelling, "Stay down or I will kill you!" They also heard a child crying.
The officers announced themselves but were ignored. They decided to break down the door once they heard the child go quiet, fearing for the boy's safety.
When they entered, they found Sherman, Simpson and the boy drenched in blood. Simpson was face down on the ground, and the boy, 2, was sitting next her. A knife was next to Simpson's body, and her face was badly battered.
The boy was taken to a hospital for evaluation, but police say he was not seriously injured.
Sherman was arrested without incident, but police say he broke out the back window of a squad car while on the way to the Ramsey County Jail. He also told officers that he was high on drugs, so they decided to have him transported by ambulance to Regions Hospital for evaluation.
After he was released, Sherman was moved to police headquarters to talk with homicide investigators. He told them that he was with his 2-year-old nephew at Simpson's apartment, when the nephew "became possessed by a dog." The boy then told Sherman that Simpson was actually a man.
Sherman and Simpson then started arguing, and Simpson went to the kitchen to grab a knife. Sherman says Simpson tried to attack him, so he slammed her head against a metal radiator about eight times. He said he then blacked out, and didn't remember stabbing her several times in the face, neck, scalp, and lower body.
Sherman has been civility committed on multiple occasions for mental illness and drug dependency. He told investigators that he has been prescribed drugs, but he didn't take them "because he is not crazy."
St. Paul Police spokesman Steve Linders says officers were extremely disturbed by what they saw inside the apartment.
"It's an emotional call. When we have a child there, it adds an extra layer to everything," Linders said. "And then when you have a woman who has been gravely injured, there's a lot of questions that need to be answered. And when she passes away, it amplifies that and makes it more incredibly sad."
Sherman could face up to 40 years in prison if convicted.
This was the fifth homicide of the year in St. Paul.
