Grandson stabs 91-year-old at senior living home, then is shot dead, VA cops say
A man accused of charging officers and attacking a 91-year-old woman with a knife was shot and killed by police at a senior living community, Virginia authorities said.
Two officers responded to reports of a knife-wielding man “in crisis” at about 10 a.m. April 26 at Westminster at Lake Ridge Senior Living Home in Woodbridge, the Prince William County Police Department said in a news release.
The man, identified as 26-year-old Joseph Cassell, approached officers with the knife and disregarded their orders, causing them to fire at him, police said.
Then, he started attacking the woman, and officers fired again, killing him, according to police, who said the man and woman were family.
Inside Nova and WJLA reported that the woman was the man’s grandmother.
According to police, the grandmother was flown to a hospital with injuries and is expected to make a full recovery.
No one else was injured and both officers were placed on administrative leave, police said.
McClatchy News reached out to Westminster at Lake Ridge April 28 but did not immediately receive a response. Kera Wooten, the executive director, told WJLA the incident was isolated and they will continue working with authorities.
“Our hearts go out to the resident who directly experienced this traumatic incident this morning,” she said.
The investigation is ongoing, police said. A motive was not made clear.
Woodbridge is about a 20-mile drive southwest from Washington, D.C.
This story was originally published April 29, 2025 at 7:49 AM with the headline "Grandson stabs 91-year-old at senior living home, then is shot dead, VA cops say."
