Port Orange man stabs parents during Thanksgiving Day fight, deputies say

VCSO: Edwin Daugherty faces 2 counts of attempted murder

PORT ORANGE, Fla. – A judge ruled Friday that a Port Orange man accused of stabbing his parents during a fight on Thanksgiving Day will remain jailed on no bond.

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Edwin Daugherty was arrested Thursday on two counts of attempted murder. He remained emotionless as he faced a judge Friday morning and at times, he glared at his attorney.

Deputies said they found Daugherty, 34, walking down the street Thursday when they responded to a call in the 2300 block of Costa Del Sol Drive in Port Orange.

Deputies believe Daugherty became irate during an argument with his 72-year-old mother, Patsy Daugherty, the Volusia County Sheriff's Office said.

The argument became physical when Edwin Daugherty placed his mother in a headlock, and then placed his 76-year-old father, Thomas Daugherty, in a headlock when he tried to intervene, deputies said.

The Sheriff's Office said that Edwin Daugherty grabbed a steak knife with a 4-inch blade after pushing his father to the ground and stabbed his father multiple times in the chest. The Sheriff's Office added that when Patsy Daugherty tried to help her husband, Edwin Daugherty stabbed her, too.

It's not known what prompted the initial argument.

The mother and father were taken to Halifax Health Medical Center in Daytona Beach. Deputies said Thomas Daugherty was listed in serious-to-critical condition and Patsy Daugherty was listed in serious condition.

The Sheriff's Office said witnesses who had  been sitting at the dinner table, next to the kitchen, told deputies they had seen Edwin Daugherty stab his parents before leaving the home.

Deputies found a knife in some bushes about a block from the house, the Sheriff's Office said.

Edwin Daugherty was arrested and taken to the Volusia County Branch Jail.

A man who lives in the area said tensions in the neighborhood are high following the murder.

"People are scared to death. I've seen their lights on at night. I said, 'Hey, he's gone. He's in jail. He's not going to bother you now,'" Jim Marsh said.

 

Marsh lives across the street from the Daughterys and said the couple fits in well with the quiet neighborhood. The son wasn't all there, however, Marsh said.

 

"He always seemed like a nice boy. A little disturbed," Marsh said.

 

Neighbors said the couple are friendly, church-going people.

 

"It's a tragic response, you know, something like that. Out of all the people that it happened to, it happened to them." Marsh said.

 

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