A woman fatally stabbed her husband in front of their child: a court in Nikopol has delivered a verdict in a high-profile murder case.

Recently, a court in Nikopol delivered a verdict in a high-profile murder case that occurred in October of last year. The case involves the killing of a man by his wife in front of their young child. This was reported by "Vідомо" referencing Nikopolnews.

As previously stated by the police, law enforcement in Nikopol apprehended a 41-year-old suspect. On October 16, 2023, a call was made to the "102" emergency line by residents of an apartment, reporting that a 3-year-old girl from a neighboring unit had run over to say that her mother had killed her father.

The suspect explained that during a quarrel, she inflicted a single knife wound to her partner's heart. A kitchen knife was recovered from the crime scene. The attacker was arrested and charged under part 1 of Article 115 (intentional murder) of the Criminal Code of Ukraine, and was taken into custody. The final court session occurred in November 2024.

Who was on trial

It is known that the accused is a native of Nikopol, a citizen of Ukraine, employed at the "Dneprovskiy" Culture Center, with a secondary vocational education. She is a widow with a minor child to support. She is not a person with a disability, a pensioner, or a deputy.

What happened on that tragic day

The case materials indicate that on October 16, 2023, during the daytime, the accused was at her actual place of residence, where she lived with her husband, with the intent to kill.

At approximately 14:10, while in the kitchen, the accused, acting on her intent to deliberately kill her husband, picked up a kitchen knife from the table and inflicted one stab wound to the left side of his chest, causing him to sustain injuries characterized as a stab wound to the left anterior chest wall with damage to the aortic arch, classified as serious bodily harm.

The man's death resulted from a penetrating stab wound to the left anterior chest wall with damage to the aortic arch, leading to external bleeding and complicating with acute blood loss. The accused's actions were classified under part 1 of Article 115 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine, resulting in the death of another person.

What the accused said

During the court session, the accused did not admit guilt, claiming that the incident was an accident and she had no intent to kill her husband. Regarding the circumstances of the case, she explained that on October 16, she was at home. She lived in the apartment with her husband, young daughter, and father-in-law. That morning, her husband went to his mother’s to cover the sandbox as it started to rain. He returned home at noon that day in a state of intoxication, and his father asked if he had brought any alcohol. The man replied that he would bring some and went to buy a bottle of alcohol (vodka).

This was accompanied by a quarrel with foul language. Because the man was intoxicated, they had an argument during which he allegedly slapped her on the head, but there were no injuries, and he then left. She heard a quarrel between her husband and his father. While cutting vegetables (cabbage), she needed garlic, so she turned to get it from the refrigerator. After that, everything happened like in a fog. She does not know how he ended up on the knife but emphasized that she did not wish to kill him, and everything happened accidentally; it was an accident.

After that, she began shouting to her father-in-law to call for an ambulance. The entire time until the medics arrived, she sat and held the man's head, insisting that everything was an accident. She had consumed vodka (up to 100 grams) until about 1:00 PM. Regarding her relationship with the man, she stated that they had quarreled before, sometimes grabbing forks or knives, but only to scare each other; they did not inflict injuries. There was an instance when she broke a cup on the man’s head, but that was self-defense. The man drank alcohol constantly and had been fired from work. During the debates, she noted that all witnesses were interested parties. Although there were quarrels between them, she did not want to kill her husband because she loved him, emphasizing that it was an accident and she apologized to the victim's family.

The position of the victim's side

The mother of the deceased reported that on the morning of October 16, her son came to her to repair the sandbox and around noon informed her that his wife was preparing lunch (borscht) and needed to buy something, so he went home. After a while, a neighbor called her and told her to come over because something terrible had happened. It took her about 5 minutes to reach her son's apartment, and upon entering, she found her son lying on the floor in the hallway; the police and paramedics were already present.

The granddaughter was at the neighbor's, so she went to her. The granddaughter was crying and said that mommy had killed daddy. The deceased son was described as calm and non-confrontational, someone who helped everyone, and when intoxicated, he was not aggressive, having undergone treatment to stop drinking.

A month before the incident, the daughter-in-law told the victim that her son had started drinking alcohol again. The victim described the accused as a confrontational and aggressive person, who constantly yelled and insulted her son, abused alcohol (daily), and used drugs (as told by the deceased son), was addicted to gambling, spending money on it, and had debts because of this.

She also reported that there were constant conflicts, quarrels, and fights between the couple, which the daughter-in-law initiated. There were instances when the accused inflicted bodily harm to the deceased with a knife to the head, and shortly before the murder, she hit him on the head with a cup and also stabbed him in the neck with a fork. Regarding the violence against the daughter-in-law by her son, she was unaware, but she was a direct witness to their conflicts and observed the aggressive manner of the daughter-in-law towards family members.

She filed a civil lawsuit for compensation for moral damages caused by the actions of the accused in the amount of 1,000,000.00 UAH. In her lawsuit, the victim stated that the actions of the accused caused her moral and physical suffering, as her son, her closest person, was killed. She experienced moral shock and feels indescribable pain and emptiness in her soul; her sleep has disappeared, and her chronic illnesses have worsened due to emotional distress.

All these physical and emotional sufferings are directly linked to the traumatic and physical factors that affected the victim as a result of the accused's criminal actions.

What the witnesses said

A neighbor who was questioned as a witness stated that there were quarrels between the couple with foul language, which she mostly heard from the wife, as she was the one who initiated the disputes. They drank alcoholic beverages together. The deceased was good and helped everyone, while his wife was very jealous. About a week prior, she had already called the ambulance and police to their neighbor due to their conflict. The deceased's father testified that on that day, his son went to his mother to repair the sandbox and returned around 11:00 or 12:00. The daughter-in-law was drinking alcoholic beverages that day, while the son did not. The witness did not know in what condition his son returned as he did not see him; he was in his room. At that moment, a quarrel began between the couple, but he did not know the reason as he was not listening; however, the daughter-in-law was demanding that her son bring vodka and call someone named "Cholik," all of which was said in raised voices. For a while, the son was absent, then he returned. Afterward, his granddaughter ran to him saying she was scared because mommy was yelling. After that, he hardly heard anything because he was focused on the granddaughter. Shortly after, the daughter-in-law screamed that she had killed the man.

Upon leaving the room, he saw his son lying in the hallway. He then took his granddaughter and went to the neighbors to call an ambulance and the police. He also noted that the previous evening they had consumed alcoholic beverages together. A month prior to the incident, his son had started drinking alcohol again but did not apply violence to his wife. When intoxicated, he behaved adequately. The witness mentioned that he did not interfere in their conflicts, and at that time, his son had filed for divorce. In their conflicts, the daughter-in-law would start yelling, and his son would always calm her down.

The decision made by the court in Nikopol

The court examined various pieces of evidence and the results of examinations. The court concluded that the accused had direct intent to cause death to the victim, specifically targeting a vital organ, exemplified by the choice of a knife as the weapon. No circumstances mitigating the punishment were established by the court, nor were any aggravating circumstances.

The court found the woman guilty and sentenced her to 8 years and 6 months in