A Port Charlotte teen accused of murdering his mother made his first court appearance on Friday after being indicted by a grand jury.
Collin Griffith, 17, is facing a first-degree murder charge and a kidnapping charge after being formally accused on Thursday.
Griffith was appointed a public defender and is being held without bond.
According to the Polk County Sheriff’s Office, Collin Griffith killed his mother, Catherine Griffith, 39, in his grandma’s Auburndale, Florida home.
During a news conference, Sheriff Grady Judd said Collin and his mother had an “argument about chores,” leading him to run away to his grandmother’s home. The grandmother was in the Keys at the time.
On Sept. 8, Catherine drove up to the home after Collin refused to return home.
Catherine arrived around 4 p.m. when neighbors said they saw the two arguing out front.
According to witnesses, Collin grabbed his mother by the hair and dragged her inside the home.
About two hours later, PCSO received a call from Collin stating, “he had a fight with mom, and she is bleeding from the neck.”
PCSO said investigations revealed that Collin used a kitchen knife to stab his mother in the neck twice.
Deputies arrived on the scene where they say Collin immediately told them, “I know my rights, I want an attorney.”
Collin was arrested and is facing a first-degree murder charge and a kidnapping charge.
Griffith is due back in court on October 8.
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