What Would You Do If Your Son Killed Your Daughter?
Investigation Discovery
Paris and Ella
ABILENE, TX — Ten years ago, Charity Lee suffered a mother’s worst nightmare when her 13-year-old son Paris killed her four-year-old daughter Ella.
In February 2007, Paris, a gifted child with an IQ of 141, stabbed his half-sister to death with a kitchen knife at home in Abilene, Texas. Lee, who was working as a waitress at a Buffalo Wild Wings, will never forget the fateful moment when police came into the restaurant and told her that her daughter was dead. Her initial reaction was disbelief — which quickly turned to horror.
Investigators determined that Paris had convinced the babysitter she could go home, and then grabbed a knife.
Investigation Discovery
Photo of Paris and Ella
The 44-year-old mother’s powerful story of grief, love, fear, and forgiveness over the past decade is featured in the documentary The Family I Had, which you can watch on ID GO right now!
The film explores the crime and the circumstances surrounding it, including the family’s complicated history with mental illness, addiction, and domestic abuse.
Paris told investigators that his original plan was kill his sister, and then wait for his mother to come home and kill her, too. He reportedly told investigators that he wanted to punish Lee, a former heroin addict, for putting her drug habit before him.
Paris was labeled a sociopath by experts — but has refused further psychological evaluations since becoming an adult. He said: “I chose to do my crime, and I take full responsibility for my crime … I’m not insane and I don’t suffer from any mental illness.”
Lee said that despite his crimes, she still loves her son. She now has a four-year-old son and lives in Savannah, Georgia.
Investigation Discovery
Poster: The Family I Had
“I have forgiven Paris for what he did, but it’s an ongoing process,” Lee told the New York Post. “If he was free [from captivity], I would be frightened of him. The fact that he is incarcerated gives me peace of mind, but I worry about his own safety.”
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Main photo: Paris and Ella [Investigation Discovery]
