Former News Anchor Gets Life Sentence for Killing Mum as Stepdaughter Calls Attack 'So Calculated, So Demonic'

Former television news anchor Angelynn Mock has been sentenced to life in prison for stabbing her 80‑year‑old mother to death as she lay in bed, with her stepdaughter condemning the killing as 'so calculated, so demonic'.

Mock, 48, received the mandatory life term in Wichita, Kansas, on Monday, 5 October, and will be eligible for parole after 25 years. She had pleaded guilty in August to first-degree murder in the commission of a felony over the Halloween 2020 stabbing of her mother, Anita Avers.

Judge Jeffrey Goering said Kansas law required a life sentence, with Mock eligible for parole after 25 years.

Mock cried as relatives described the effect of Avers' death during an emotional sentencing hearing. Avers' stepdaughter, Sonja Kreutziger, called the killing 'so devastating, so calculated, so demonic'.

The guilty plea marked the end of a case that had previously included questions over Mock's competency to stand trial and an initial claim of self-defence.

Police found 80‑year‑old Avers unresponsive in bed with multiple stab wounds at the Wichita home where Mock lived with her mother and stepfather. Avers later died in hospital.

Stepdaughter Calls Killing 'So Calculated, So Demonic'

Kreutziger addressed the court in person and remembered Avers as a compassionate, loving and generous woman. 'There used to be so much joy in my heart because of her,' she said.

Kreutziger then described the family's shock over the circumstances of Avers' death. 'The person I knew as gentle, kind Angie did not just murder her mom; she ambushed Anita while Anita was in bed asleep,' Kreutziger said. 'This was so out of character for the Ange we thought we knew, so devastating, so calculated, so demonic.'

Another victim impact statement, read on behalf of Avers' granddaughter, called for Mock to receive a severe punishment. 'I believe [Mock] should never see daylight again,' the granddaughter said.

Mock declined to address the court about the killing. She cried through much of the hearing as relatives spoke about Avers and the effect her death had on the family.

Mock Initially Claimed She Acted in Self-Defence

Mock's guilty plea differed sharply from the account she initially gave investigators after Avers was killed. According to a probable cause affidavit, Mock told police that Avers had 'came after her with a knife' and that she had acted in self-defence.

Mock also claimed her mother had been sharpening knives while in bed before the confrontation. 'I had to kill her, she wasn't going to stop,' Mock told police, according to the affidavit.

Officers found Avers lying on a bed with multiple stab wounds. The affidavit said investigators observed at least 12 holes in the top sheet.

According to Court TV, several knives and a cheese grater were found near her body. Mock had cuts on her hands and arms when officers encountered her outside the home.

The proceedings were also delayed by questions over whether Mock was competent to stand trial. Local reporting citing court records said she was found incompetent in January and transferred to a state hospital for further evaluation and treatment.

Goering found her competent to stand trial in July. Mock pleaded guilty the following month.

Mock's stepfather told investigators that she had initially been diagnosed with bipolar disorder before that diagnosis was changed to schizoaffective disorder, according to the supplied reporting. The available sources do not establish that either diagnosis caused Avers' killing.

Former News Anchor Gets Life With Parole Possible After 25 Years

When asked for a sentencing recommendation, a prosecutor told the court that the facts of the case required little further argument. 'The case speaks for itself. It's a tragic situation. I don't see any point in belabouring the point. I just simply ask you to follow the law in this matter,' the prosecutor said.

Goering sentenced Mock to life in prison, with the possibility of parole after 25 years, and credited her with 339 days already served. The judge also said Mock would not be eligible to earn 'good time' credit that could further reduce the sentence.

When Goering advised Mock of her appellate rights, she said she wanted the record to reflect that she did not intend to appeal. Local reporting said she still had two weeks to change that decision.

Mock did not otherwise address the court before the sentence was imposed. Her silence left the victim impact statements to carry much of the hearing, including Kreutziger's description of a killing she said was completely at odds with the woman the family believed they knew.

For Avers' relatives, the sentencing brought a life term for the daughter who admitted killing her. Mock will first become eligible for parole after 25 years, while the family's words in court focused on the loss of a woman Kreutziger remembered as compassionate, loving and generous.