Spokane Valley woman accused of attempting to kill 5-year-old son, herself

A mother and her 5-year-old son were rushed to a hospital early Saturday after she allegedly attempted to kill the boy and herself in their Spokane Valley apartment. She now faces a charge of first-degree attempted murder.

Daphne M. Williams, 38, fed the boy a cocktail of medications by crushing pills and mixing them with hot water and corn syrup, according to records filed in Spokane County Superior Court. She also is accused of attempting to suffocate him.

According to the Spokane County Sheriff’s Office, Williams called 911 at about 12:40 a.m. Saturday, identified herself and said she had tried to kill her son and planned to kill herself.

“Operators could hear someone gasping for breath in the background,” court records state.

Deputies responded to their apartment at 12505 E. Third Ave., near Pines Road, where they detained Williams and provided medical attention to the boy, who was “in and out of consciousness,” the sheriff’s office said.

Court records state Williams “made numerous spontaneous statements” to deputies after she was read her Miranda rights. She told deputies about the pills and the corn syrup solution, saying she had given her son a combination of Benadryl, Aleve and nortriptyline, an antidepressant, the records state.

Court records quote her as saying: “We are all going to die a slow, painful death by chemicals meant to torture and kill all of us from China. … It didn’t work. It didn’t work. I’m so sorry, my baby boy. … Dying is a lot harder than it looks.”

A responding firefighter asked Williams at the scene if she had tried to strangle her son, and she allegedly replied, “No, I suffocated him.”

After receiving medical attention, Williams was booked Sunday into Spokane County Jail on a charge of first-degree attempted murder. A judge set her bond at $1 million, and she remained in jail Tuesday.

Her son remained hospitalized in satisfactory condition Tuesday, the sheriff’s office said.

In court records Saturday, a detective wrote the boy was unconscious at Providence Sacred Heart Medical Center.

“It is suspected that (he) has some degree of hypoxic brain injury,” the detective wrote.

While searching the apartment, detectives in the kitchen found a bottle of corn syrup, a jar containing the pill solution, numerous pills and an empty container for a medication used to treat migraines, according to court records. They also found a note stating the incident was “done out of mercy.” The note stated, “I am not a monster,” according to court records.

The sheriff’s office said anyone struggling with thoughts of suicide should call 911, the First Call for Help hotline (509) 838-4428 or the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline (800) 273-8255.