Mother, 92, 'who killed her son because he wanted to move her to assisted living' is arraigned but is too ill to show up in court
- Anna Mae Blessing's defense attorney entered not guilty please on her behalf Thursday
- The 92-year-old from Fountain Hills, Arizona, refused to be brought to court citing her multiple health problems
- Attorney Ulises Ferragut says jail is not a good place for a wheelchair-bound 92-year-old woman suffering from back and stomach ailments
- Court previously heard that Blessing had been worried about her son Thomas's plans to put her in a home because she 'had become difficult to live with'
- On July 2 she entered his bedroom, and opened fire with a gun hidden in her bathrobe, killing him, police said
- Her son's girlfriend wrestled the gun, and another pistol, off Blessing who then sat meekly on a recliner waiting for police
- As she was arrested, she announced: 'You ended my life, so I'm taking yours'
- When detectives asked Blessing what she thinks should happen to her 'she replied she should be "put to sleep" as a result of her actions'
Arraigned: Anna Mae Blessing, of Fountain Hills, Arizona, had her lawyer plead not guilty on her behalf to killing her son after he threatened to put her in a home
The attorney for a 92-year-old Arizona woman charged with killing her son because he wanted to put her into assisted living said entered guilty please on her behalf at her arraignment on Thursday, saying his client was too ill to attend the hearing.
Anna Mae Blessing has been in jail since her arrest in the July 2 shooting death of 72-year-old Thomas Blessing at the home they shared in Fountain Hills, an affluent Phoenix suburb.
Attorney Ulises Ferragut said his client suffers from back issues, is in a lot of pain and uses a wheelchair.
He is examining places where his ailing client can be brought to get the care she needs. Ferragut declined to discuss the facts of the case or reveal the types of places he is considering putting his client if she manages to post the $500,000 bond.
'Jail is hard enough for anyone, right, when you are 92, you can imagine how difficult it is both physically, emotionally, mentally,' Ferragut said after an arraignment hearing held Thursday.
Blessing, who is being held in a jail infirmary, refused to be brought to court Thursday. A not guilty plea was made on her behalf to charges of first-degree murder and aggravated assault.
She is due back in court on August 30.
Ulises Ferragut,Blessing's defense attorney, told reporters on Thursday his client is very ill
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Investigators say Blessing was upset about her son's plans to put her into an assisted living facility and argued with him over the way she was being treated.
After the shooting, investigators say Thomas Blessing's girlfriend managed to take away two guns from the woman.
'You can imagine the whole family is torn,' Ferragut said. 'You've got one member of the family that's died. You've another member of the family that's in jail. Both are elderly. I mean, this is a very difficult and unique situation.'
Police said Blessing shot her 72-year-old son on July 2 with one of two pistols she stored under her bed in her room in his girlfriend's condo.
They moved her there six months ago and Anna had become worried that the pair were plotting to move her into a home.
On the morning of the incident, Blessing hid two pistols inside her house robe and walked into her son's room and show him twice.
One bullet struck his neck and the other pierced his jaw.
She then turned the gun towards her son's girlfriend, who has not been named, but the 57-year-old was able to wrestle it out of her hands.
It was at that point, Blessing allegedly reached into her robe pocked and pulled out her second weapon, which the girlfriend also managed to wrestle out of her hand.
All out of guns, Blessing simply took a seat in a recliner chair and waited for the police to arrived.
As she was arrested, she announced: 'You ended my life, so I'm taking yours.'
Blessing appeared in court earlier this month, in a wheelchair and orange jumpsuit, to face charges of first-degree murder, aggravated assault with a deadly weapon and kidnapping
The court heard that Blessing had been worried about her son's plans to put her in a home because she 'had become difficult to live with'
When detectives asked Blessing what she thinks should happen to her 'she replied she should be "put to sleep" as a result of her actions'
Blessing told officers she had wanted to kill herself but was out of weapons.
When detectives asked Blessing what she thinks should happen to her 'she replied she should be 'put to sleep' as a result of her actions.'
She explained that both the guns she used, a revolver and a .25 caliber pistol, were hers but that she hadn't fired either since the 1970s, before July 2.
Sheriff Paul Penzone said police had been called out to at least one other case of domestic violence involving Blessing and her son but could not give further details.
'It is always concerning when domestic issues escalate to violence or tragic outcomes,' Penzone told KSAZ-TV. 'They are often isolated and neither predictable nor preventable.'
Blessing's husband, Billy Blessing, died in 2007 in Florida. Their son Thomas has previously been arrested for harassment and assault.
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