On July 28th 2019, Emerson Figueiredo, 43, got into an argument with his wife, 35-year-old Nathalia DaPaixao. They were fighting about money, and at one point DaPaixao suggested a divorce.
“The two children would testify that their parents had argued frequently in the past,” Associate Attorney General Jeffery Strelzin told the judge. “And recently there had been a lot of arguments about money. The defendant was stressed over money, and the victim wanted more financial freedom.”
The arguing continued throughout the day, prosecutors said. At one point, the couple removed their wedding rings and eventually DaPaixao mentioned the possibility of divorce.
“The defendant was very angry at that point. The children said they had never seen him so angry, and said something to the effect of, ‘You’re not going to ruin my life,'” Strezlin said, according to the Monitor.
via msn.com
Figueiredo then began beating his wife with her own shoe, eventually moving to the kitchen and getting a knife. He started stabbing her inside the home, in front of their two children; a young boy and 12-year-old daughter.
The daughter was able to intervene long enough for her mother to escape from the home, but Figueiredo followed quickly.
Outside, he continued to stab her and stomp on her as the children and neighbors witnessed in horror.
DaPaixao was taken to the hospital where she later died.
I’m not saying it would have helped, but I’m also not saying that it would have made things worse. Had a neighbor who witnessed the attack been armed, the chance could have been there to stop the attack from continuing, and possibly saving the woman’s life.
We will never be able to stop all evil people from doing their evil deeds, but we need to do what we can to be prepared not only for ourselves, but others who could be in need right in front of us.
