Harris County son allegedly killed his mother using a hammer: HCSO
Harris County man speaks on stepson who allegedly killed his mother with hammer
According to Eva Peavy's husband, her son, Jarell Joseph, has been charged before with being violent towards her before she was killed.
HARRIS COUNTY, Texas - A mother was found dead by Harris County Sheriff's Office authorities after they responded to a 911 call from a family member Wednesday night.
The woman, identified as Eva Peavy by Harris County Sheriff Ed Gonzalez, was found unresponsive in the garage by her stepson, according to officials and family members.
Mother found dead in garage on Ellesmere Drive
What we know:
HCSO Sergeant Michael Ritchie reports deputies arrived in the 13200 block of Ellesmere Drive in east Harris County around 9:30 p.m.
The stepson of the woman said he came home, found his stepmother in the garage with unknown injuries, and called 911.
According to Sgt. Ritchie, the stepson told officials his stepbrother, 35-year-old Jarell Joseph and the woman's biological son, was in the home and had a hammer. The stepbrother wasn't speaking to him and was behaving differently, so the stepson kept his distance.
Harris County deputies went to the home and saw the man with the hammer. He was detained and began cooperating with deputies.
Investigators believe Joseph beat his mother to death with a hammer in the garage of their home, where he lived with his parents.
EMS got to the scene and pronounced the mother dead at the scene.
Harris County Sheriff Ed Gonzalez reports the mother's biological son was charged with murder and was booked in Harris County Jail.
What we don't know:
Harris County officials do not know if anybody else was in the home at the time the incident happened.
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Eva Peavy
Previous violent tendencies against mother
Dig deeper:
Joseph had been charged before with being violent towards his mother. He was charged with Assault of a Family Member back in 2016 for attacking Peavy.
According to court records, Joseph did "intentionally and knowingly cause bodily injury to Eva Peavy (his mother)...by impeding the normal breathing and circulation of blood by applying pressure (to her) throat and neck".
Harris County crime: Adult son accused of killing his mother with hammer
Officials say the victim's stepson came home, found his stepmom in the garage, then found his stepbrother with a hammer.
"Keep me and my family up in prayer"
What they're saying:
Peavy's husband and Joseph's stepfather, Curtis Peavy, spoke to FOX 26 reporter Damali Keith the day after his wife's death.
"[Joseph] had a hammer in his hand and my son was like ‘What do you want to show me?' So, he followed him. He opened the garage door and turned the light on, and he saw my wife lying on the garage floor. He said 'I took her out. That wasn't really my mother,'" explains the grieving husband. "Jarell told his son he also did something to me and his son was trying to call me. In the text it said 'I've taken out Curtis and Eva. That's not really your grandmother. Your grandmother's real name is Kimberly.' We don't even know where that came from."
Peavy says Joseph has a history of mental illness and was diagnosed with several conditions.
"Schizophrenia, paranoia, bipolar. He didn't always take his meds, but he told his mother he was. He wasn't always like that. He got into the wrong group and was doing that kush and fried his brain," Peavy explains.
According to him, the first sign that something was wrong was when his stepson worked as a cable installer.
"He got frustrated trying to sync a DVR, and he started throwing things in the customer's house," Peavy says.
Joseph lost his job and lived with his mother and stepfather for the past 15 years.
After being arrested on a drug charge in 2011, then trespassing in 2015, Joseph was locked up in 2016 after choking his mother.
"Thank God, at that time my mother-in-law, her mother, was staying with us. She had to beat him off with a broom," Peavy explains.
So did Mrs. Peavy fear for her safety around her son?
"She must [not have]. I told her I did because I wasn't comfortable, especially after the incident when he choked his mama," Peavy explains.
"She was my everything. We worked together, that's how we met. We've been married 23 years, 23 lovely years," says Peavy, and he adds, "I know I'm holding on by the grace of God, just asking the community to pray for my family and also for those families that have loved ones suffering with mental illness because it's a serious problem."
Harris County crime: Adult son accused of killing his mother with hammer
Officials say the victim's stepson came home, found his stepmom in the garage, then found his stepbrother with a hammer.
The Source: Information from this article was provided by HCSO Sergeant Michael Ritchie at the scene and Sheriff Ed Gonzalez's X account. FOX 26 reporter Damali Keith also spoke with the victim's husband.