76-year-old Mesa woman caught on camera beating elderly sister with 2x4, police say
Catherine Emerson, 76, wears an assisted hearing device during an appearance in court. Inset: Emerson's booking photo. (Maricopa County)
MESA, Ariz. - A 76-year-old woman was booked into jail on Thursday after police say a neighbor captured video of her brutally beating her elderly, cognitively declining sister with a rake and a 2x4 wooden board outside their East Mesa home.
What we know:
Officers arrested Catherine Mary Emerson on July 23 following the violent altercation at a home near Higley Road and University Drive. Emerson now faces multiple charges, including felony aggravated assault with a deadly weapon and intentional abuse of a vulnerable adult, according to court documents filed in Maricopa County.
According to a police probable cause statement, the victim was sitting on the steps of her home trying to ward off blows with her arms raised over her head as the attack unfolded. Investigators say Emerson first struck her sister with a rake, then picked up a 2x4 board and hit her across the arms, legs and body. Emerson then allegedly grabbed her sister by the hair and punched her in the face multiple times.
A neighbor who witnessed the incident recorded the assault on a cell phone and provided the footage to law enforcement officers, who noted the attack could be clearly seen on the video. The neighbor told police there has been a long history of ongoing abuse between the live-in sisters, but this was the first time the conduct was caught on camera.
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Dig deeper:
Responding emergency personnel with the Mesa Fire Department evaluated the victim at the scene and determined her injuries — which included extensive scrapes, bruises and marks across her face and arms — were severe enough to require hospitalization. Officers located and arrested Emerson at the home the next afternoon.
Emerson remained in Maricopa County custody Friday on charges of felony aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, felony vulnerable adult abuse and misdemeanor disorderly conduct.
In the courtroom...:
A judge set her bond at $15,000 with a strict no-contact order, warning that any attempt to reach her sister would send her straight back to jail without the possibility of bail. Because her sister lives in the Mesa home, the judge also ordered Emerson to stay away from the property — even though she owns it.
"Oh my gosh, I have nowhere to go," Emerson said in court after learning she could not return home.
What's next:
Her next court date is set for July 29.
Map of the area:
The Source: Information in this report was gathered from Maricopa County Superior Court records.