A Maplewood man who terrorized his parents and savagely beat his mother with a hammer earlier this year faces up to 20 years in prison after pleading guilty to attempted first-degree murder.
David Edward Williams Jr., 22, took his mother hostage in her Woodbury house the evening of Jan. 21 and struck her several times before taping her to a chair.
He then texted his father with her phone, luring him to the house, before threatening both parents with a loaded 12-gauge shotgun.
Williams, who has a bipolar condition, had stopped taking his medications and was drinking alcohol and taking drugs when the attack occurred, according to the complaint filed in Washington County District Court.
As his mother pleaded "Please don't hurt me," Williams closed all the blinds and opened a large black bag that contained a shotgun, baseball bat, knife and hatchet.
After hitting his mother with the hammer, he continued to menace his parents with various weapons and told them he planned to smoke marijuana before killing himself.
He finally allowed his parents to flee. His father drove his mother to Woodwinds Hospital in Woodbury, where it was discovered she had an open skull fracture and a traumatic brain injury among other wounds.
A law enforcement SWAT team, meanwhile, surrounded the house. Williams surrendered after several hours of negotiations.