13-Year-Old Charged as Adult After Stabbing 7-Year-Old Sister to Death Over Toilet Note

The heartbroken father of a 7-year-old Michigan girl, who was allegedly stabbed to death by her 13-year-old sister while being babysat last month, is sharing his memories of his late daughter.

In an interview with local TV station WXYZ, Jason Lilburn described his daughter, Jessie Jane Lilburn, as a child who loved outdoor activities and enjoyed spending time with family.

“Little JJ, Jessie Jane. She was just a ray of sunshine, always wanted to be outside, always riding her bike,” Lilburn told the outlet.

The 7-year-old died at a local hospital on September 28 after police responded to reports of a possible stabbing at a home in Taylor, Michigan, a suburb of Detroit, around 1 p.m.

According to FOX 2 Detroit, authorities reported that the girls’ parents left their 7-year-old and 13-year-old daughters at home around 11:15 a.m. that day, with the older sister babysitting.

Detective Zachary DiGiacomo alleged that the stabbing occurred after an argument about a note the 7-year-old had left in the bathroom, asking people to “generally flush the toilet.”

He claimed that the 13-year-old sister took the note, prompting the younger girl to knock over the kitchen trash can in an attempt to retrieve it, causing a mess in the process.

The 13-year-old eventually went to her bedroom and came down to stab her sister “about 30 minutes later” in the bathroom with a “butcher-style knife,” the detective alleged.

According to DiGiacomo, the older sister then went to get a larger knife and then stabbed her sister some more.

The detective claimed that the victim was stabbed more than 10 times in total.

Lilburn told WXYZ that the sisters had “normal sibling arguments” and no history of violence before the deadly incident, calling the killing, “totally unexpected.”

“It really pulls at my heart that [Jessie’s] not with us anymore and that there’s so much love for her,” Lilburn said of the memorial set up in front of his house for his late daughter.

The 13-year-old, who allegedly called 911 after the stabbing, is now facing charges of first-degree premeditated murder, felony murder, and first-degree child abuse, according to a news release from the Wayne County Prosecutor’s Office.

The teen, whose identity is being withheld due to her age, was initially charged as a juvenile, but Prosecutor Kym Worthy added the adult designation based on “other facts discovered in the case.”

While being charged with an adult designation does not mean the minor is charged as an adult, if convicted, a judge can choose to sentence her as a juvenile, as an adult, or a combination of both.

Additionally, if the suspect is sentenced as a minor and does not show improvement, the judge can impose an adult sentence later on.