A Florida woman, accused of killing her former domestic partner's child before allegedly attempting to take her own life, left a note citing a church sermon on child sacrifice, police said.
According to the Jupiter Police Department, Kimberly Dawn Lucas, 40, was babysitting the children of a former domestic partner on Monday, when one of the children, a 10-year-old boy, called 911 for assistance.
The boy, who is not being identified because of his age, told police he awoke next to Lucas a while after taking a pill she gave him. The boy said Lucas was unconscious, so he went to look for his sister and discovered the bathroom door locked. After using a knife to gain entry to the room, the boy said he found his sister submerged in bathtub water. He attempted CPR and called for help, according to the police report.
"I think he's the bravest person I ever met," Jupiter Police Chief Frank Kitzerow said of the boy's actions at a Tuesday press conference.
Authorities arrived on the scene just after 2:30 p.m., and found 2-year-old Elliana Lucas-Jamason unresponsive on the bathroom floor and an unconscious Lucas in a nearby bedroom. The girl and Lucas were transported to a local hospital, where Elliana was pronounced dead and Lucas was hospitalized in critical condition.
While at the residence, authorities noticed a computer on a kitchen table that was displaying a message in a word document. The message, which contains spelling and grammar errors, reads, in part:
"In YOUR WORDS 'WHEN YOU ARE LAYING IN BED AT NIGHT REMEMBER YOU F-----G DID THIS TOO YOURSELF!'"
The note also refers to a sermon a local church pastor had given the previous day that "covered Genesis 22, in which God asks Abraham to sacrifice his son Isaac, but at the last minute, God stops him from doing so," the probable cause affidavit states.
The portion about the sermon read:
"[The pastor's] sermon really, really touched me yesterday but God never told me to stop!"
The author mentions a 20-year relationship and was signed, "Love you Always, Kimberly."
According to Kitzerow, Lucas is the former domestic partner of Jackie Jamason, the mother of the two children she was babysitting. The couple, the police chief said, recently split up.
Questioned by police about what happened Monday, the 10-year-old boy said Lucas crushed at least one pill, mixed it into coffee and told him to drink it because it would make him grow faster. He said he drank the mixture and watched Lucas try to give his sister a similar concoction. He said the little girl refused, so Lucas said she was going to give his sister a bath. He fell asleep shortly thereafter, according to the affidavit.
A local medical center tested the boy's urine and found traces of the powerful sedative benzodiazapene, police said.
Lucas, whom authorities allege attempted to commit suicide, was released from the hospital on Tuesday. Authorities charged her with one count each of first-degree murder and attempted first-degree murder.
On Wednesday, a judge ordered Lucas held in the Palm Beach County Jail until a bond hearing could be scheduled. A date for that proceeding is not yet known. The judge also ordered Lucas not to have contact with her ex-girlfriend or the 10-year-old boy.
Following Lucas' first court appearance, her attorney, Marc Shiner, called the situation a tragedy.
"The community and the family deserve answers and we're looking for those answers," Shiner told WTEV News.
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Suicide Hotline: Need help? In the U.S., call 1-800-273-8255 for the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline.