Ga. mom who stabbed 3 kids to death, set house on fire avoids death penalty with plea deal

PAULDING COUNTY, Ga. — A Paulding County mother accused of stabbing three of her kids to death, trying to stab four others and setting their home on fire in 2022 has taken a plea deal.

According to court records obtained by Channel 2 Action News, Darlene Brister received a negotiated plea of three consecutive life sentences for the deaths of her children, aged five months, three years and five years.

Paulding County District Attorney Matthew Rollins announced months after the murders that he intended to seek the death penalty against Brister.

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In June 2022, a 911 caller said a woman inside a house was trying to stab the people inside and that the house was also on fire.

When first responders arrived, they found seven children inside the home. The 5-month-old and 3-year-old were pronounced dead on the scene.

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Three more children, ages five, nine and 11, were taken to local hospitals for their injuries. The 5-year-old died from his or her injuries.

The two remaining children, 14 and 16, did not appear to have any injuries.

Darlene Brister’s husband, Ricky Brister, told Channel 2′s Michele Newell that they had been married for 17 years and his wife was a good mother, but suffered from depression.

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DA seeking death penalty against Paulding mother accused of stabbing kids, setting house on fire Darlene Brister is accused of setting her house on fire with her seven children inside. The three youngest ones died.

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