Lawyer says boy, 14, who shot and killed his drunken mother, acted 'bravely and legally' in self-defense to protect himself and his 12-year-old brother
- Boy, now 15, is charged with voluntary manslaughter near Wichita, Kansas
- He shot his mother Lisa Trimmell, 41, in the side of the neck on June 20, 2018
- Her husband, a wealthy orthodontist, had filed for divorce six weeks earlier
- Lisa Trimmell remained living alone in their $1.8M home after he took the kids
- Shooting occurred on one of the two days a month she received visitation
- Kids claimed that she was abusive and the shooting was in self-defense
- Autopsy confirms she was drunk but prosecutors have yet to make their case
The attorney for a boy who was 14 when he shot and killed his drunken mother has said that the shooting was justified in self-defense.
Lisa Trimmell, 41, was at home with her sons, then aged 12 and 14, when she was killed by a gunshot wound to the side of the neck on June 20, 2018 outside of Wichita, Kansas.
This week, attorneys for her elder son filed a motion to dismiss a charge of voluntary manslaughter that is pending in juvenile court, citing self-defense.
The older brother 'acted bravely and legally in defending himself and his younger brother ... from her attack,' said lawyer Dan Monnat, according to the Wichita Eagle.
Lisa Trimmell, 41, was in the midst of a divorce battle with her husband Justin Trimmell (right) when their eldest son shot her dead, claiming it was in self-defense
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'For many years, Lisa Trimmell was a devoted, loving mother who raised two intelligent, polite and well-behaved young boys to lead good lives,' Monnat said. 'But, the autopsy of Lisa Trimmell confirms her death is another instance of the rampant disease of adult alcohol abuse leading to tragic results.'
An autopsy confirmed that Trimmell had a blood-alcohol level of 0.185 at the time of her death, more than double the legal limit to drive, and found signs of 'hepatic cirrhosis' consistent with 'acute and chronic alcoholism'.
However, prosecutors have yet to lay out their case, and declined to comment except to say that the teen was due in court on Friday.
Bitter divorce preceded the homicide
Six weeks prior to Lisa Trimmell's death, her husband Justin Trimmell filed for divorce.
Justin is a successful orthodontist in Witchita, and the couple had been married for nearly 18 years.
Lisa worked as an office administrator in Justin's practice, and according to court papers, her annual income was $96,000 and his was $399,404.
At the time of the shooting, Lisa was left living alone in the couple's massive 8,500 square-foot, six-bedroom mansion, which is currently on the market for $1.788 million
In his May 9 divorce petition, Justin cited 'deep and irreconcilable conflict in their personalities or temperaments.'
By June 20, Justin had a new girlfriend, Brittany Hall, and had custody of the children for all but two days a month under a temporary parenting plan.
Meanwhile, Lisa was left living alone in the couple's massive 8,500 square-foot, six-bedroom mansion, which is currently on the market for $1.788 million.
Night of the shooting
Monnat's motion says the two brothers were with Lisa Trimmell at the mansion on June 20, 2018 as one of her two days per month of court-ordered parenting time.
She had taken the boys to the home after the older brother's baseball game in west Wichita. There was no one else in the home besides the mother and two boys, police say.
Attorneys for the teen say that Trimmell was drunk and physically attacked the younger brother.
The older brother grabbed his mother's handgun, 'fearing for the life of his younger brother, as well as his own,' and fired a single shot, the document states.
The older brother called 911 at about 10.36pm to report the shooting. About 28 minutes later, paramedics pronounced Lisa Trimmell dead at the scene.
Justin (left) is a successful orthodontist in Witchita. Lisa (right) worked as an office administrator in Justin's practice. Her annual income was $96,000 and his was $399,404
The autopsy found that a medium-caliber copper jacketed bullet entered the base of the side of her neck, veered down, and severed her spine.
The autopsy report also lists 16 separate blunt-force injuries to Trimmell, from her scalp and forehead to her lower leg.
However, its unclear whether the injuries were sustained prior to the shooting, or when she collapsed and paramedics attempted to resuscitate her.
What's not clear is whether some injuries could have been caused when she collapsed or when someone tried to resuscitate her.
Lingering questions over the shooting
Friends say that Trimmell was physically frail and anemic, and question whether she would have been a physical threat to the boys, who were athletic although they weighed less than her.
A sheriff's report says that Trimmell was five-foot-six and weighed 133 pounds. Her 14-year-old son was five feet tall, 100 pounds and her 12-year-old son, four-foot-ten, 85 pounds, the report says.
The mansion where the shooting occurred is now on the market for $1.788 million
'She was a loving, devoted mother,' friend Jennifer Cook, a physician, told the Wichita Eagle of Trimmell. 'Every day that I talked to Lisa, she talked about her kids, about what kind of dinner she would make for them when they would come over, what kind of summer camp they would be interested in, and whether or not they would allow her to attend their baseball game or school activity.'
But Monnat, attorney for the elder boy, insists that the shooting was justified by Trimmell's abusive behavior.
'This tragic event should not now be made more tragic by second-guessing the difficult decisions made that night through the prosecution of a child,' Monnat said.
'Under clear Kansas law, children have as much right to defend themselves and their siblings against repeated acts of violent abuse as anybody else.'
