Collin Griffith is a Florida teenager who killed both of his parents about eighteen months apart and walked away without a conviction in either case. In February 2023, at 15, he shot his father in Oklahoma and told deputies it was self-defense; prosecutors dropped the murder charge within weeks. In September 2024, his mother was found with a fatal knife wound to the neck at a home in Auburndale, Florida. A Polk County jury acquitted him of first-degree murder and kidnapping on February 5, 2025.
The Oklahoma Shooting That Was Never Prosecuted
On February 14, 2023, Griffith called 911 from a home near Stroud in Lincoln County, Oklahoma, and told dispatchers he had shot his father, Charles Robert Griffith. He said his father had cornered him in a bedroom with a knife. Charles Griffith had been shot once in the chest and once in the head.1Fox 13 News. Florida Teen Accused of Killing Mother Learns His Fate
The Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation worked the scene and noted inconsistencies between the physical evidence and what Griffith told dispatchers.2Lincoln County News. Affidavit Released in Fatal Shooting He was charged with first-degree murder. Less than a month later, Lincoln County District Attorney Adam Panter dropped the case, saying his office “could not rule out that Griffith acted in self-defense.”3KOKO 5 News. Father Shot and Killed in Lincoln County Panter later said investigators had found physical evidence at the home supporting the account that Charles Griffith had come at his son with a knife, and that the case would be re-evaluated if new credible evidence surfaced.4KOCO 5 News. Oklahoma Lincoln County Murder Case Self-Defense Shooting No one witnessed the shooting other than Griffith.
Warning Signs Between the Two Deaths
After his father’s death, Griffith moved to Florida to live with his mother, Catherine Griffith. In November 2023, Charlotte County deputies responded to a domestic call at Catherine’s Port Charlotte home. She told them her 16-year-old son had pushed her to the ground and stomped on her after she took away his video game privileges.5ABC News. Teen Arrested in Mother Stabbing He was placed on juvenile probation with a no-contact order barring him from contact with his mother.
Body-worn camera footage captured Griffith’s grandmother telling deputies that the teen had refused to go home and was asking to be placed in foster care. A corporal on scene told him “foster care isn’t good for you.”6Court TV. Teen Pleads for Help Before Mother’s Murder He was released the next day and returned to his mother’s home. Within hours, jail staff reported he had said he wanted to kill his mother, and he was involuntarily committed under Florida’s Baker Act.7MySuncoast. Teen Who Allegedly Killed His Mom Is Questioned by Deputies
The Death of Catherine Griffith
On September 8, 2024, Catherine Griffith drove from Port Charlotte to Auburndale to pick up her son from his grandmother Susan Dethman’s home on Hewlett Drive. According to the Polk County Sheriff’s Office, she was concerned Griffith was violating court orders.8ABC 7 Chicago. Florida Teen Collin Griffith Found Not Guilty Witnesses saw the two arguing outside, then saw Griffith grab his mother by the hair and pull her into the house. Catherine was heard saying, “Let me go.”9Polk County Sheriff’s Office. Polk County Sheriff’s Office Arrests 17-Year-Old for Murdering His Mother
About an hour and fifteen minutes later, at roughly 6:15 p.m., Griffith called 911 and said his mother had “fell on a knife.”10The Ledger. Differing Tales Offered of Mother’s Death in Collin Griffith Murder Trial Catherine, 39, had a deep penetrating wound to the neck so severe that first responders could see the floor through it, along with a wound to her hand. The medical examiner concluded the neck injury was “inconsistent with an accidental injury.” Griffith had no visible injuries.9Polk County Sheriff’s Office. Polk County Sheriff’s Office Arrests 17-Year-Old for Murdering His Mother
He was charged with first-degree murder, kidnapping, and violation of the juvenile no-contact order.
The Florida Trial
The case went to trial in late January 2025 in Bartow, before Circuit Judge J. Kevin Abdoney. Assistant State Attorney Mark Levine prosecuted; Amy Porinchak Thornhill defended.11WESH. Florida Teen Who Killed Father Acquitted in Murder of Mom
What the Prosecution Argued
Levine argued the killing was premeditated, telling jurors it was “Operation kill mom accomplished.” He pointed to a pattern of threats in which Griffith had described killing his mother by throwing her from a car, shooting her, or stabbing her, calling stabbing a “reoccurring theme.” Prosecutors introduced text messages and recordings in which he called his mother an “evil bitch.”10The Ledger. Differing Tales Offered of Mother’s Death in Collin Griffith Murder Trial
Catherine’s father, Robert Walantas, testified that his grandson had said, “I want to slit her throat” and “I’m tired of these two bitches / want to see them bleed out,” meaning his mother and grandmother.12Scripps News. FL v. Collin Griffith Deadly Son Murder Trial Deputy Keri Welch testified that Griffith had previously told law enforcement he might push his mother and grandmother from a car, stab them, or shoot them, and that he had “done it before” — a reference to his father’s death.13Court TV. FL v. Collin Griffith Deadly Son Murder Trial For the kidnapping count, prosecutors pointed to the neighbor’s account and an AirPod found in mulch near the carport, which they said had been dislodged as Catherine was forced inside.
What the Defense Argued
Thornhill argued self-defense during a prolonged fight and described Catherine as “unpredictable” and “erratic.” The defense floated a “suicide by son” theory: that Catherine picked up the knife knowing what would happen.13Court TV. FL v. Collin Griffith Deadly Son Murder Trial
The defense’s key witness was Susan Dethman, Griffith’s grandmother and Catherine’s mother. She told the jury Catherine had a history of lying, suicide attempts, and estranged relationships, and alleged Catherine had been violent toward her son, once handing him a gun and telling him to kill her. Dethman testified she did not believe her grandson murdered her daughter.14Court TV. Collin Griffith’s Grandmother Says Victim Had History of Lying
On the kidnapping count, Thornhill noted that Ring footage did not show Griffith forcing his mother through the door, the doors were unlocked, and Catherine had no scalp injuries to support being dragged by her hair.
The Verdict and Where Things Stand
Jurors were instructed to consider lesser charges of second-degree murder, manslaughter, and false imprisonment. They began deliberating on February 4, 2025, and returned in under twelve hours the next day with not-guilty verdicts on every count.8ABC 7 Chicago. Florida Teen Collin Griffith Found Not Guilty Levine declined to comment.11WESH. Florida Teen Who Killed Father Acquitted in Murder of Mom
Griffith, then 17, was released from jail. Family friends told reporters they did not know where he would live.
The Oklahoma case is technically still open. DA Adam Panter has said his office would re-evaluate the shooting of Charles Griffith if credible new evidence emerged, and the OSBI has not been asked by Lincoln County authorities to reopen the investigation.4KOCO 5 News. Oklahoma Lincoln County Murder Case Self-Defense Shooting