Twitter Lisa Trimmell was killed by her 14-year-old son after she allegedly assaulted his 12-year-old brother in a drunken rage.
Lisa Marie Trimmell, 41, was fatally shot by her older son, who said he was defending his brother when their mother went into a drunken rage.
Defense attorney Dan Monnat, who represents the older boy, said that on the night of June 20, 2018, his client was trying to stop a violent assault at their home outside Wichita Kansas. Monnat told the court that the teen “acted bravely and legally in defending himself and his younger brother…from her attack.”
After a year-long investigation, the Trimmell’s older son was charged with voluntary manslaughter. Monat has asked the Sedgwick County District Attorney’s Office to drop the charge before the boy’s first court appearance on July 26.
The boys, who were 14 and 12 years of age at the time of the shooting, have not been identified due to their status as minors.
Those who knew Lisa Trimmell had very different recollections of their friend. “Lisa was always a nice sweet lady to me and my family. Her and I were able to recently talk for about an hour about life struggles. She assured me that God has a plan and everything will get hard before it gets better,” Debby Chenowth wrote.
“She was a loving, devoted mother. 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,” Sheri Cook told the Wichita Eagle.
Here’s what you need to know about the life and death of Lisa Trimmell.
1. Trimmell Was Getting Divorced & Lived Alone in the Family’s Mansion
Lisa Trimmell was born in Minnesota but had spent her teen years in Missouri. She graduated from Baylor University in 1999 with a Bachelor of Business Administration, Financial Services and Planning. Trimmell worked for the tax firm H & R Block before she and husband Justin moved to Wichita in 2004. Justin and Lisa Trimmell were married for 18 years.
Trimmell’s LinkedIn page shows she had handled the accounting and human resources for Trimmell & Anders, her husband’s orthodontic practice. She also worked with several other businesses. At the time divorce proceedings were initiated, she was employed by Serenity Massage Clinic.
Justin and Lisa Trimell separated about four months before her death. Justin Trimmell and the two boys moved out of the family’s mansion, leaving Lisa Trimmell to live alone at 3235 N. 159 St., East, near Andover, a Wichita suburb. The estate had six bedrooms, 8,500 square feet and was on a 30-acre property that included a tennis court and fishing pond.
When Justin Trimmell filed for divorce, about one month before Lisa’s death, he cited “incompatibility…deep and irreconcilable conflict in their personalities or temperaments.”
2. Lisa Trimmell Was Drunk When She Allegedly Attacked Her Younger Son
Update: “Although this case had a suspect, the details surrounding the death of Lisa Trimmell and events in Lisa’s life must be investigated.” #ReadLocal
As part of the parenting agreement, Lisa Trimmell had visitation rights for one night every other week. On the evening of the shooting, Trimmell brought the boys back to the mansion after they’d attended the teen’s baseball game.
The older son said she was drunk and proceeded to argue, then violently attacked the 12-year-old. The 14-year-old retrieved a loaded handgun that his mother kept in the house, shot her and called 911 around 10:36 p.m. Lisa Trimmell was pronounced dead 28 minutes later.
Trimmell’s autopsy revealed that her blood alcohol level was 0.185, nearly twice the legal amount for driving. Her autopsy also discovered she suffered from “acute and chronic alcoholism” and “cirrhosis of the liver,” scarring of the liver that can be caused by chronic drinking.
Her autopsy recorded her cause of death as a homicide and noted that the bullet entered her neck and then severed her spine.
Monnat told the Wichita Eagle that Trimmell’s alcoholism had been an ongoing problem. “For many years, Lisa Trimmell was a devoted loving mother…But, the autopsy of Lisa Trimmell confirms her death is another instance of the rampant disease of alcohol abuse leading to her tragic results.”
3. Law Enforcement Called Trimmell’s Death “Suspicious”
In October 2018, The Wichita Eagle reported that the Sedgewick County Sheriff’s Office previously described Lisa Trimmell’s death as “suspicious,” but wouldn’t elaborate.
One question that remains unanswered is how Trimmell wound up with 16 blunt-force injuries on her scalp, forehead, trunk, arms, and lower leg. The coroner could not determine the cause of those injuries or if they had occurred while attempting to resuscitate the mortally wounded Trimmell.
4. Trimmell’s Sons Were Diagnosed with PTSD Before Her Death
According to Monnat, a counselor who had seen the two boys before Lisa Trimmell’s death determined that they both suffered from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) as a result of their mother’s constant physical and psychological abuse. Lisa Trimmell was warned by the counselor that her continued drinking would set off their PTSD.
The Mayo Clinic defines PTSD as “a mental health condition that’s triggered by a terrifying event.” Symptoms can include being easily frightened, self-destructive behavior, trouble with sleeping and negative changes in mood. “PTSD symptoms can vary in intensity over time,” the clinic says.
5. The Defense Says Charges Should Be Dropped Due to Kansas’ “Stand Your Ground” Law
Monnat emphasized that his client had every right to defend himself and points to Kansas statute 21-5222, which says that a person is justified in the use of deadly force “if such person reasonably believes that such use of deadly force is necessary to prevent imminent death or great bodily harm to such person or a third person.”
“Under clear Kansas law, children have as much right to defend themselves and their siblings against repeated acts of violent abuse as does anyone else,” Monnat told KAKE.