Friend of Slain Mother Speaks Out After Son Allegedly Killed Her in Self-Defense

A stock police tape photo. (Scott Olson/Getty Images)

A friend of the mother who was allegedly killed by her son reveals that she was a “loving” and “devoted” mother, despite reports of her alleged abuse, The Wichita Eagle reported.

“I don’t know how any child could kill their mother ... she was a loving, devoted mother,” said Jenifer Cook, the friend.

This was her response to Lisa Marie Trimmell’s death after Trimmell’s 14-year-old son allegedly shot her in order to protect his younger brother.

The Wichita physician knew Trimmel, 41, for a little over a decade and became a lot closer since the beginning of this year.

They grew closer through attending Bible study, watching movies, and going for walks on Wednesdays.

Initial reports of the alleged voluntary manslaughter showed Trimmell as a drunkard who physically and psychologically abused her two sons, WIBW 13 reported.

But Cook found the incident unusual.

“It is so strange. It doesn’t happen in Wichita, Kansas,” she said, The Eagle reported.

Cook added that Trimmell would gush about their lives whenever she talked to her.

“Every day that I talked to Lisa, she talked about her kids,” Cook told The Eagle. “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.

The boys’ attorney Dan Monnat wrote in his documents that Trimmell attacked the younger brother while drunk. Cook described her as a multimillionaire professional who was looking to start a new business and wanted to replace her old car so her son’s sporting equipment could fit inside.

Since Trimmell was going through a divorce, Cook was “amazed” at her ability to maintain normalcy.

“I was amazed at how she was handling the divorce,” she said. “As a physician, I couldn’t help but watch her for signs of depression … because so many things were happening to her at once.”

Her stance on the incident is clear.

“Lisa was the same person ... the accusations made against her don’t make sense.”

On That Fatal Night

On the night of Trimmell’s death, Trimmell brought her two boys back to the mansion since they lived with Justin Trimmell, their father, NTD News reported.

Court documents say she was ordered to spend time with her sons twice a month and on the night of her death she allegedly attacked the younger brother while drunk, Daily Mail reported.

“Fearing for the life of his younger brother,” the older brother grabbed his mom’s gun, shot her in the neck, and called 911.

Deputies arrived at the 3200 block of North 159th Street East around 10:30 p.m. and pronounced the 41-year-old mother dead at the scene.

Before their mother was fatally shot, a counselor had diagnosed the two brothers with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) due to physical and psychological abuse, the New York Post reported.

The counselor was told that PTSD would trigger whenever the mother drank.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.