Father stabs 16-month-old son to death, yells ‘Jesus is coming’

DALLAS — A father was charged with capital murder Tuesday after police said he stabbed his 16-month-old son at a Dallas-area apartment complex.

Blair Ness, 27, is charged in the death of his toddler son, Ashton Ness. Authorities said the father was shot in the leg by a neighbor trying to stop the attack on Sunday.

Lewisville police Capt. Mike Lane said Ness had significant injuries to his hand from the knife, along with the shooting wound.

Police also said witnesses reported that Ness yelled “Jesus is coming” before the attack.

There’s no clear motive behind the slaying. Authorities said Tuesday that detectives were interviewing the suspect. Bond was set at $1.5 million.

According to a police affidavit, the attack is believed to have begun inside Ness’ apartment, which was filled with a smoky haze and smelled of newly burnt marijuana. Police found a large blood stain on the master bedroom carpet, with a blood-stained folding knife and skull fragments lying by the bedroom door.

Officers found a trail of blood leading outside to where neighbors witnessed the attack, and several kitchen knives were found in the grass next to a pool of blood, the affidavit stated.

Ness was found on a patio and was subdued with a shock gun when he refused police commands.

As he was being handcuffed, Ness said: “I know everyone’s mad. I’m mad. I killed my son,” according to the affidavit.

Ness’ girlfriend and the child’s mother, Alexandra Murphy, arrived shortly after police. She said that when she left for work earlier Sunday, Ness was feeding their son.

She said she could think of no reason why Ness would want to hurt their son, according to the affidavit. Ness had been reading the Bible extensively recently, she said, and they had been attending church services.

A GoFundMe has been created to raise funds for Ashton Ness’ mother with expenses.