Police arrest Santa Monica man for allegedly killing his elderly mother

Officers arrested a Santa Monica man for allegedly fatally stabbing his elderly mother Saturday morning, police said.

Santa Monica Police say the department received a call around 5:30 a.m. from a man who said his brother, 43-year-old Vernon Jeremiah Harris, had stabbed their mother several times.

Police responded and found the two brothers at the apartment in the 1100 block of 12th Street.

Officers led the siblings away before seeing their mother suffering from multiple stab wounds to her upper body. The woman died from her injuries on the way to a local hospital, authorities said.

Police said the suspect, Harris, who had no known criminal history, lived with his mother and two older brothers.

Authorities said Harris may have physical and developmental disabilities, and that the brother who claimed the stabbing was babysitting Harris and their mother.

His brother reportedly woke up when he heard his mother yelling for help and entered the bedroom to see Harris standing over her with a knife in his hand.

Police said the third brother was at work at the time of the incident but arrived at the scene during the investigation and gave a statement to detectives along with Harris’ other brother.

While executing a search warrant, detectives located the gun used in the attack, and forensic science responded to the scene to investigate.

Harris will be booked and transported to the Los Angeles County Jail to await his first court appearance, police said.

The Santa Monica Police Department encourages anyone with information or suspicions about this incident to contact Detective Jauregui at [email protected], Sergeant Lozano at [email protected], or the 310-24 hour Duty Commander desk. 458-8427.

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