Rainsville man sentenced to life in prison for stabbing parents

DEKALB COUNTY, Ala. ( WHNT ) — District Attorney Summer Summerford announced that Ballard Pennington Jr. was sentenced to life in prison for stabbing his parents in January.

On September 10, Pennington Jr. entered a guilty plea to two counts of attempted murder and the DA’s office said because of his “extensive criminal history,” he was sentenced to life in prison.

The DeKalb County Sheriff’s Office said they were called about a reported stabbing in Rainsville on January 7. The department said a deputy found Pennington Jr. walking down the road near the home he was responding to.

The deputy said he noticed Pennington Jr. had blood on his hands and said, “I think I killed my mom and dad.”

The department said the deputy went to the home where he found a man and a woman who were stabbed multiple times each. Additional officers from DCSO and Rainsville Police Department then responded to the house. The victims were taken to the hospital.

Pennington Jr. was previously arrested and charged with two counts of domestic violence for the stabbing. Court documents show Pennington Jr. was indicted in April on one count of attempted murder and one count of domestic violence.

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