Jonathan Leslie Blackburn
The sentence was imposed by Superior Court Judge Karen Eady Williams of Mecklenburg County after Blackburn entered a guilty plea to the charges against him just four days before the matters were set for trial.
On May 17, 2025, deputies from the Catawba County Sheriff’s Office responded to a 911 call regarding a male dragging a female across the yard, and both had blood on them.
When they entered the residence upon arrival, deputies saw blood throughout the home on various items, the walls and blinds. They located the defendant in the yard of a nearby residence with blood on his hands. He claimed that the victim attacked and cut him, and he told deputies where they could find the knife.
The victim was located around the corner of the next-door residence. She was covered in blood, and deputies could see that she had multiple stab and defensive wounds. She was in and out of consciousness but was able to tell deputies her name and that the defendant had attacked her.
She was transported to the hospital for her injuries. Blackburn was not initially admitted to the jail because of his injuries and also was taken to the hospital. Body camera footage from one of the officers showed him admitting that he tried to kill the victim, had cut his hand in the process, and he needed stitches.
He later admitted in an interview that he had stabbed the victim but did not intend to kill her.
Story: Arianna Mack-WHKY