Judge Sentences Man Who Attempted to Kill His Mother

Thomas George was accused of trying to kill his mother last fall

A New Hampshire teenager admits to trying to kill his mother at their Salem home last October. In an emotional court hearing Monday, Thomas George's mother, Cathy, offered forgiveness.

The 19 year old pleaded guilty to attempted murder and theft in Rockingham Superior Court.

He admitted to stabbing his mother in the neck and leg and beating her in the head with a hammer.

Cathy George says her son, who has a history of drug abuse, had been taking too much of his prescribed Adderall medication. She says she took the bottle to make sure he was only getting what he needed. According to state prosecutor Jerome Blanchard, that's what prompted the attack.

"He was taking more than the recommended dose and that's why his mother was taking them," Blanchard said. "He became mad at her the day before because she wasn't giving them as he wanted them."

After stealing a car, leading police on a three-hour chase, and forcing local schools into lockdown, officers caught up with George back in his neighborhood.

Blanchard says medical evaluations proved George was having a mental breakdown, but he says there wasn't enough evidence to find him not guilty by reason of insanity.

Cathy George says she was horrified by her own reflection during the months it took for her wounds to heal. And while she is healed physically, George says the scars remain as a contstant reminder of the brutal attack.

"I no longer look at a knife as a utensil, or a hammer as a tool," George said. "Rather, I see these as weapons my son used to try and kill me with."

She calls it an unnecessary, unprovoked attack, but still offered her son forgiveness before he was led out of the courtroom in handcuffs.

Thomas George will spend ten years to life behind bars receiving appropriate medication and counseling.

If and when he is released, he will be closely monitored by the state.

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