Court filing of mother who killed her son in North Andover, MA, murder-suicide – NBC Boston

Investigators looking into the deaths of a woman and her baby in North Andover, Massachusetts, have released few details about the suspected murder-suicide that involved the use of a knife.

The Essex County district attorney said Tuesday that the community is still trying to understand what went so terribly wrong in the deaths of Jennifer T. Paez and her son, Valentino. Investigators have not yet explained why they believe Paez killed her child. But court records about Paez shed some light on her past interactions with police and paint a picture of a person with mental health issues.

On December 10, 2022, she was arrested on suspicion of assault on a family member at the Turnpike Street home where she was found dead on Monday – her sister said she had been aggressive toward her mother and both feared for her safety. According to a police report, the sister told officers Paez suffered from bipolar disorder and was not taking her medication, which led to erratic and aggressive behavior, such as shooting the family cat with a Nerf gun and destroying property.

Five days later, Paez was arrested for reckless driving, failure to stop for police and disorderly conduct. Police said she stopped her SUV on Broadway in Lawrence, caused a traffic jam and then sped away at 50-60 mph as officers began investigating.

If you or someone you know is in crisis, call or text 988 to reach the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline or chat live at 988lifeline.orgYou can also visit SpeakingOfSuicide.com/resources for additional support.

When she finally stopped more than a half-mile away, Paez tried to kick the officers, then yelled profanities and threatened to fight, the arrest report says. An officer at police headquarters recognized her from previous encounters and said she tried to commit suicide by jumping out of a moving vehicle.

Authorities believe a woman killed her nine-month-old son before taking her own life.

Paez was evaluated at a hospital and eventually a judge ordered the charges to be dropped if she complied with her medication and other probation requirements, which would have happened on October 3.

Paez also had a history of traffic violations in Lawrence. In August 2009, she was caught driving in Newton and was found to be driving without a license. She received a suspended sentence. In September 2017, Paez was arrested for allegedly driving an uninsured vehicle with a suspended license in Lawrence. The charges were dropped.

Paez and Valentino were found Monday in a home on Turnpike Street. Details were initially scarce, but investigators said Tuesday they went to the home after a 911 call around 5:15 p.m. and found both the mother and son with wounds that appeared to have been caused by a knife.

The mother's death was pronounced at home, while Valentino was taken to Lawrence General Hospital and pronounced dead at 6:30 p.m., authorities said.

Local residents said the deaths came as a shock.

Few details were initially known about the cause of death of the two people in a house in North Andover, but neighbors said they were unsettled by the large police presence during the investigation.