A Florida woman has been arrested and charged with first-degree murder after authorities say she killed her elderly mother following prior conversations about “death with dignity,” a term commonly associated with physician-assisted suicide for terminally ill patients, according to a probable cause affidavit.
Martha Jo Blake, 66, was booked into the Palm Beach County Detention Center on Saturday, Dec. 27. Court records show she is being held without bail, and it is not clear whether she has entered a plea.
Blake is accused of killing her 97-year-old mother, Patricia Blake, who was found dead in her West Palm Beach home. Deputies with the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office responded to the residence around 8 a.m. on Friday, Dec. 26, to conduct a death investigation, the affidavit states.
According to investigators, Martha Blake was present when authorities arrived and said she had last seen her mother alive the night before. She told deputies that her mother suffered from Parkinson’s disease and a thyroid disorder.
Because Patricia Blake’s primary care physician was based out of state, her death was referred to the Palm Beach County Medical Examiner’s Office for an autopsy. The examiner determined that the cause of death involved a “combination of injuries that were not consistent with a natural death” and ultimately ruled it a homicide.
Following the autopsy, investigators obtained a search warrant for the home after documentation revealed traumatic injuries that authorities said could be associated with strangulation.
During interviews with investigators, Martha Blake said she had served as her mother’s caregiver for the past five years. She also told authorities that she and her mother had discussed “death with dignity” approximately a year and a half earlier with Patricia’s primary care doctor in Maine.
According to the affidavit, Blake described “death with dignity” as a form of assisted suicide, but said her mother’s physician determined she did not qualify because she was not terminally ill.
Physician-assisted suicide is not legal in Florida.
Blake also allegedly told investigators that her mother had repeatedly expressed that she did not want to continue living. At one point, she said, they discussed suicide by pills but concluded they did not have access to anything lethal.
During the search of the home, investigators collected white calf-length socks found in a garbage bag, along with clothing that authorities claim Blake said she was wearing at the time of the incident.
The affidavit includes significant redactions, and it is not entirely clear whether a direct confession was made.
Blake’s defense attorney declined to comment when contacted on Tuesday, Dec. 30.
