Crime Fix with Angenette Levy - 9 Shocking Moments in Killer Son's Murder Trial So Far

Episode Date: January 30, 2025

Collin Griffith, 17, is being tried as an adult for the September 2024 death of his mother, Cathy Griffith, in Polk County, Florida. Collin was charged with murdering his mom nearly 18 months after he shot and killed his father in Oklahoma. Prosecutors said they could not disprove Collin's claim that he shot his father in self-defense. Law&Crime's Angenette Levy details the top moments from the first day of Griffith's trial in this episode of Crime Fix — a daily show covering the biggest stories in crime.PLEASE SUPPORT THE SHOW: If you or a loved one have suffered physical or mental health issues due to video games, visit https://vgclaims.com/crimefix to answer less than 10 questions and check your eligibility to file a claim!Host:Angenette Levy  https://twitter.com/Angenette5CRIME FIX PRODUCTION:Head of Social Media, YouTube - Bobby SzokeSocial Media Management - Vanessa BeinVideo Editing - Daniel CamachoGuest Booking - Alyssa Fisher & Diane KayeSTAY UP-TO-DATE WITH THE LAW&CRIME NETWORK:Watch Law&Crime Network on YouTubeTV: https://bit.ly/3td2e3yWhere To Watch Law&Crime Network: https://bit.ly/3akxLK5Sign Up For Law&Crime's Daily Newsletter: https://bit.ly/LawandCrimeNewsletterRead Fascinating Articles From Law&Crime Network: https://bit.ly/3td2IqoLAW&CRIME NETWORK SOCIAL MEDIA:Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lawandcrime/Twitter: https://twitter.com/LawCrimeNetworkFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/lawandcrimeTwitch: https://www.twitch.tv/lawandcrimenetworkSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Wondery Plus subscribers can binge all episodes of this law and crimes series ad-free right now. Join Wondery Plus in the Wondery app, Apple Podcasts, or Spotify. And the defendant said, more than anything else, I want to slit her throat and feel her bleed out and feel the life leave her body. That's how much I hate her. Jurors in Colin Griffith's trial for the murder of his mother, Kathy, hear opening statements painting two very different versions of the day Colin's mother died. His mom came to him, went into the house where he was safe and attacked him and he had to defend himself. Plus jurors hear the 911 call where Collins said his mother fell on a knife. My mom's bleeding out.

She's bleeding out. This is a Law & Crime Legal Alert. Recent allegations against the multi-billion dollar video game industry claim video games are engineered for addiction. The claims include making sense of the magical hold that video games seem to have over people where they cannot put the controller down. Every win triggers a hit of dopamine claims include making sense of the magical hold that video games seem to have over people where

they cannot put the controller down. Every win triggers a hit of dopamine that creates a cycle of compulsion, which disrupts daily life and harms mental health. Our legal sponsors are taking on this industry that has, at many times, put profit over safety. They're working to potentially get compensation for all those impacted. If you or a loved one have suffered physical or mental health issues because of video games, visit vgclaims.com slash lawandcrime to answer less than 10 questions and check your eligibility to file a claim. Welcome to Crime Fix. I'm Anjanette Levy. Colin Griffith is 17 years old and he's on trial for the murder of his mother, Kathy Griffith. This case is unusual because Colin was charged with

murdering his mother less than 18 months after he shot and killed his father, Charles, in Oklahoma. In the case of his father, prosecutors in Oklahoma said they couldn't disprove Colin's claim that he shot his father in self-defense when he was only 15 years old on Valentine's Day in 2023. Last September, Colin was charged with murdering and kidnapping his mom at his grandmother's home in Polk County. September 8th of last year in Auburndale, Florida. And it was at that time that the defendant viciously and savagely unleashed his full fury and hatred towards his mother upon her.

When he stabbed her with such force that the knife went shooting through her neck, through her neck muscles, through her esophagus, through her trachea, through her thyroid cartilage, and shot out the other side of her neck. You will hear and see that as this happened,

she began to bleed and bleed profusely through the huge gash in her neck. While she bled, the defendant was there and watched as the blood came out of the huge hole in her neck. You're going to hear that he was there as he watched the blood and the life drain from her body until she took her final breath and was officially dead.

You're also going to hear that this was exactly what the defendant meant to do and that this is exactly what the defendant had thought about doing and had wanted to do for quite some time. Now the prosecutor told jurors this was no accident and it wasn't a one off. He told multiple people, including multiple Charlotte County Sheriff's Office deputies and his own grandfather, the father of the defendant's mother, Kathy Griffith. His name's Robert Walantis.

The defendant told him something that was super, super disturbing, to say the least. You will hear from Robert Walantis that the defendant said to him that he wanted to kill his mom and how he was going to do it. And the defendant said, more than anything else, I want to slit her throat and feel her bleed out and feel the life leave her body. That's how much I hate her. You're going to hear that Mr. Walantis, needless to say, was absolutely shocked. And he told his grandson, that's sick. That's twisted.

You can't do that. Yikes. I've told you about this case before, that Colin Griffith came to live with his mom in Florida after Valentine's Day 2023. That, of course, is when he shot his father twice in the home that they shared in Oklahoma. His father was shot once in the chest and once in the head. Prosecutors in Oklahoma couldn't disprove Cullen's claim of self-defense, as I mentioned earlier. So Kathy Griffith went to Oklahoma and brought her son to Florida to live with her. The mom, as any mom would, greatly missed her son. And she didn't get an opportunity for different reasons,

including a very controlling dad that the defendant was living with. So Kathy Griffith basically didn't have much contact with her son, not because she didn't want to, but she would try to call him and talk to him, and it pained her greatly that her son was not with her so kathy the defendant's mom tried to make up for lost time and she took her son on multiple vacations they took cruises they went to disney world they traveled out of the country they They went to Washington, D.C. And she spent all her time and affection and money on the defendant. That was her son. And that's who she had missed for all those years.

Now, was Kathy Griffith the perfect parent? No. Was she the perfect person? No. But nobody is. But you're going to hear that she gave everything that she had, including her life, to try to take care of the defendant and spend as much time as she could with him, even at the cost of her life. But problems quickly arose and law enforcement became involved with Kathy Griffith and Colin. In the fall of 2023, body camera videos showed that Colin had assaulted his mom and he was charged with the incident.

Yes, sir. So what's going on, man? Um, last night me and my mom went to a physical altercation. I got arrested for domestic battery, but I'm going in front of the judge today. I have a right to a public defender, and we'll see how that goes. Okay. So how is the situation with you and mom right now?

Things calm down? No, no, no, sir. Are you guys able to get along? Where are we at? No, sir, it's not good. She thinks that I be a shot at her. I don't. She thinks that I'm the shit out of her. I don't. She thinks that I'm like psychotic, like literally psychopath, sociopath, something like that.

I don't know exactly where she's at. She thinks I'm going to kill her. I want to kill her. That I want to be the shit out of her. Do you? No, sir. Okay. Colin had also been placed on some involuntary psychiatric holds, but Colin's defense attorney told jurors that Kathy Griffith was actually the one who was the problem here and not Colin.

You're going to hear that Kathy not only wanted to cause harm to her own self, but Kathy has threatened or done harm to other people. You'll hear some of those details about some of the things that she actually did to another person in front of Colin involving weapons. You will hear that she has threatened to kill different people at different times and actually taken steps towards completing that wish. You also hear that Kathy is not exactly reliable in what she says. You'll hear this from her own mother. The defense is going to rely on Colin's grandmother, Susan Detman, who owned the home where Kathy Griffith was killed, to prove their point. Susan was the constant. She will tell you about Kathy's personality. She'll tell you about her mental health problems.

She'll tell you about Kathy's drinking and misuse of pills. She will tell you about Kathy's threats to commit suicide over the years, but not just threats. She will also tell you about the several attempts Kathy made on her own life. Beyond that, you're going to hear that Kathy not only wanted to cause harm to her own self, but Kathy has threatened or done harm to other people. The defense says Colin was simply defending himself from an erratic mother who attacked him that day last September.

And by the way, Colin has wounds too, is whether the state has proved to you beyond a reasonable doubt that what they claim happened, happened, that Colin somehow planned this, he's been plotting it for months, that he murdered and dragged his mom into the house that she went to where he was safe to kill her, or whether what Colin had been saying he was afraid would happen and that had happened in the past, actually was what occurred.

That his mom came to him, went into the house where he was safe, and attacked him, and he had to defend himself. And that he is not guilty of the murder or the kidnapping of his mother. A crime scene investigator testified about what she did to document the scene and Kathy Griffith's neck wound. Tell the jury about why do you put a ruler up next to the neck wound? It shows length and width of the injuries on the victim's body. And is that wound basically wide open? Yes. Then neighbors of Colin Griffith's grandmother testified about what they saw

when Kathy Griffith arrived at the home that day last September to try to get Colin to come home with her. When she and the defendant were talking, did it look like it was an animated or a heated conversation? Arguing from one side. I didn't see him say anything. I just heard her. Okay. And you kind of did a hand motion. Was she trying to hit him or trying to punch him or anything?

She was waving her hands like this. Okay. And then she said, let go of my hair. You're hurting me. And when you say waving your hands like that, is that like as she's been talking to him? She was talking. The same way she was talking on the other side of the car. Okay, I got you. When the defendant grabbed her hair, what did she say?

She said, let go of my hair, you're hurting me. And were you inside or outside? I was inside in my living room. So it must have been loud enough, obviously, for you to be able to hear that. I could hear that, yes. And what did the defendant do to her next? Then he just reached in and got hold to her, and he opened the door and pulled her in. Was that the last you ever saw of her?

That's the last I saw. Neighbor Nancy Jones then testified about Kathy Griffith arriving at her mom's house. The lady, well, I was a young girl, got out of the car, slammed the door, slung a purse over her shoulder, and proceeded into the house. Has you ever seen the young lady before? Not personally, one-on-one, but I've seen the car over there. I thought it was granddaughter. She looked very young. And where did you say the young lady went? She immediately went into the house. Jones then described the last time she saw Kathy Griffith, who she thought was a young girl because she was so small. Do you want me to go into the details now? Yes. I seen the lady standing on the top step, and I just seen an arm come out and grab her by the shoulder, by her hair,

and I just turned my head and immediately went back into the house. The defense questioned Jones about seeing Colin Griffith after deputies and paramedics had arrived. From your perspective, did he look upset? He looked very emotional, yes. He'd been crying. I could see him crying in the driveway. So you could tell his face was red? Oh, yeah. He was an emotional wreck. But I didn't know. Still, I did not know what happened. The prosecution then played the 911 call that Colin Griffith made that day. But Colin didn't want to be in the courtroom as it played. Take a look.

Ladies and gentlemen, Mr. Griffith has elected to waive his presence in the courtroom during the publication of States jury heard that call. I don't know. My mom is having TGMF now. She's bleeding out. Please help. Your mom is doing what? My mom is bleeding out. She's bleeding out. That was the very beginning of the 911 call. The call taker then tries to help Colin Griffith save his mom. I need you to get her to the hospital. Okay. They say he's called 911, So we're going to send an ambulance. He doesn't have time.

He's leaving at TCC. He failed. He doesn't have time. He needs to go now. Okay, and I'm using the address I see you at. Is that right? Is that where you are? Yes, ma'am.

Okay. What can I do? I have your contact number. Please don't talk about it. I'm doing what the fuck contact very cheap. Don't talk about it. What the f*** are you doing? Yes. Help is being sent. Stay on the line so I can get more information for the responders. I am. I don't.

No. I don't know. Okay. Help is being sent. Okay? Medical help is being sent. She's bleeding out. Where is she bleeding sent, okay? Medical help is being sent. She's bleeding out. Where is she bleeding from, sir? She's bleeding from the neck, ma'am. She's bleeding from my mother.

I'm sorry. Are you with the patient now? I'm with her now. Not with the patient. She's 39 years old. She has a heart condition. Is she awake? No, she's unconscious. with her now. She's not old as a patient. She's 39 years old. She has a heart condition. Is she awake? No, she's unconscious. Is she breathing? Okay, and you said next.

Okay, all right, listen to me. Listen to me. I'm sending the paramedics to help you now. Stay on the line. I'll tell you exactly what to do next. Colin Griffith told the call taker his mother had a heart condition and was 39 years old. Kathy Griffith wasn't breathing. Then the call taker gave very specific instructions to Colin about how to perform chest compressions. Right there, you heard Colin say he and his mom got into a fight and she fell on the knife. We got it for a long time. And then we got a problem. So on. This is the last thing I don't have. I'll put it across the board.

I'm going to wear it tonight. I just put it across the floor right here. He was really uncontrolled. He stopped bleeding. No more blood coming out. Later in the call, Colin told the call taker he was in the kitchen, trying to save his mom. There's no more blood coming out of my wound. It's lost at all. trying to save his mom. Despite the best efforts of that call taker, it was simply too late. Kathy Griffith had died.

Polk County deputies then took the stand. When you saw the defendant, describe his demeanor. At first, he was in a somewhat manic state. When you saw the defendant, describe his demeanor. At first, he was in a somewhat manic state, but once he went outside, he was more calm and collected. What happened when he was outside then? Outside, he spontaneously uttered to me and Deputy Sheriff Pibernick that there was blood everywhere, and then it stopped bleeding, and then she was dead. Deputy Alexander Walker then discussed Colin Griffith's demeanor once he was in the back of his cruiser.

Did he seem to have any concern or worry? No. Did he speak about anything to you? Nothing genuinely. We were talking about, or I tried to spark up just normal conversation, ask him about video games he played. And did he respond and talk about video games? Yeah, he said he enjoyed strategic games. Did his demeanor change at all when you interacted with him? A little. It seemed more cheerful at the time, but still calm. A paramedic also testified about treating Kathy Griffith and trying to save her. Now, what can you tell the jury about what you saw pertaining to the stab wound?

The stab wound itself did not seem to be very wide. It was kind of narrow in size. Upon further inspection after starting the CPR, it was obvious that every time I did a compression there was air that was coming through the wound itself. So it was obviously pretty deep. It looked like a lot of the vasculature and the stuff inside of the wound itself was very obvious and could be seen. And they had cut major areas such as arteries. Okay. What was the terminology you used? The vascular? Vascular, yes, sir. What does that mean? Meaning the tissue and stuff surrounding. So the inside of her neck was apparent, you could actually see what was inside?

Yes, sir. The prosecutor then asked Captain James Parker about Colin's demeanor. From my personal experience, it was a little odd in nature. He didn't seem very distraught or upset. He seemed kind of calm upon my entering the residence and then upon exiting the residence he seemed almost have a not a full argument but somewhat argumentative with the the deputies that were trying to assist him out of the residence. Now during the during the 11 years when you've interacted with

different people at a scene similar to this, I mean, is there any one way to act, or do you see it all? No. I mean, it's different for each person. Okay. Was the way that you described the defendant's demeanor, did that stand out? Did that stand out compared to the other scenes you've been through? Yeah, that's not. I mean, like I said, I've seen several and the, to be distraught, to be upset or to, you know, be in tears or, or even hysterical is, it's pretty, pretty common. But the defense was quick to point out that Parker doesn't know

Colin Griffith. You did say that there is no one right way for somebody to act after they've been through either a fight or a traumatic experience, right? I did say that. So you cannot say what was going on inside of Colin's mind or heart when you saw him, can you? No ma'am, I didn't say what was going on inside of him. And you have no idea what he's been through in his life and what coping mechanisms he has devised or that he has had to come up with to survive those things, do you? No, ma'am. I said I've never met him before this. Okay. And you have no idea what happened in that kitchen before you arrived, do you? No, ma'am. I cannot speculate as to that. So that was it for the first day of testimony in Colvin Griffith's murder trial.

We will continue to follow the case for you. That's it for this episode of Crime Fix. I'm Ann Jeanette Levy. Thanks so much for being with me. I'll see you back here next time.