A Charleston woman pleaded guilty Friday in Kanawha County Circuit Court to the lesser charge of involuntary manslaughter in the stabbing death of her boyfriend.
Stacy McCormick, 30, was originally facing one count of first degree murder in the death of 50-year-old David Snyder. The two got into an argument at a home on West Washington Street on August 16th. Accounts vary on what happened that night.
Kanawha County Assistant Prosecutor Dan Holstein says McCormick claims she was protecting herself.
“She had been cutting on herself with a knife in [the bedroom]. She indicated that the victim came in forcibly into the room,” Holstein said. “Her version was that he had thrown her up against a wall and as he came toward her again, she grabbed a knife, opened it up and he essentially walked into the knife and was stabbed.”
When Snyder was taken to the hospital he told authorities he didn’t know who stabbed him. But when officers returned at a later time he told them what happened.
“He said, ‘Yes. It was Stacy McCormick, my girlfriend who stabbed me,'” Assistant Prosecutor Holstein related to the court Friday. “His version was that he had come home and she was mad at him for being out and she came at him aggressively and then stabbed him.”
Snyder suffered a puncture wound to his lung but checked himself out of the hospital three days later. He called 911 that afternoon in distress. By the time paramedics arrived on scene, Snyder was dead.
McCormick was charged with murder on August 18 and has been behind bars ever since. Holstein made it clear it was a case of “he said, she said” and in this case the “he” was dead which limited their case against McCormick. That’s what lead to the plea deal of involuntary manslaughter which is a misdemeanor punishable by up to one year in jail.
McCormick has already spent five months behind bars and her attorney asked that bail be set in the case. Holstein argued against it.
“Let’s not forget that somebody has died here because of her actions,” he said.
Kanawha County Judge Zakaib denied the request for bond and set a sentencing date of March 1.
Meanwhile, the victim’s family is not happy with the plea deal. They say they knew McCormick was pleading to involuntary manslaughter but were not told it was just a misdemeanor. They plan to speak out at her sentencing, asking the court to make her serve the full one year in jail.