HARRIS COUNTY, Texas – A Texas man pleaded guilty to murdering his girlfriend after he stabbed her 27 times. Now he has been sentenced to spend 60 years in prison, according to a report.
Katy Houck, 47, was viciously stabbed to death Aug. 17, 2020. Dantravias Jamal McNeil pleaded guilty to the murder. On Wednesday he was sentenced by a judge to spend the next 60 years in prison, according to Harris County District Attorney Kim Ogg,
Houck was dating McNeil when they checked into a motel on Garth Road in Baytown that deadly night in 2020, Fox News Digital reported.
Several hours after the couple checked in, Baytown police responded to reports of a disturbance.
Upon arrival, officers discovered McNeil, who was described as hysterical and located close to a knife. Police also located Houck inside the room and laying in a puddle of blood.
EMS transported Houck to an area hospital in critical condition, but she was later pronounced dead.
McNeil was arrested at the scene on the evening of the homicide.
Houck sustained at least 27 stab wounds, including two in the heart, according to a press release issued by the DA’s office.
“Domestic violence, like in this case, is insidious because it escalates and can intensify with almost no warning, and that is why we take all cases of domestic violence so seriously,” Ogg said. “Our hearts go out to the family who lost a loving mother, a woman who was still a caretaker for one of her children, in an absolutely senseless act of violence.”
Assistant District Attorney Kimberly Garcia of the Domestic Violence Division co-prosecuted the case. She said McNeil has a long criminal history, which includes three prior convictions for domestic violence. In each case, including the murder, he claimed he was acting in self-defense, reported Fox News.
“Even though he pleaded guilty, he still didn’t take responsibility for what he did, so we are glad he was sentenced to what amounts to a life sentence,” Garcia said.
