Orange County Man Formally Charged With Stabbing Mom To Death

ORANGE COUNTY, CA -- A Garden Grove man is looking at the possibility of life in prison after he was formally charged on Monday with killing his mother last week.

Jonathan Michael Warner, 28, was charged with one count of murder. He could face up to 25 years to life in prison if convicted at trial.

Warner is accused of beating and stabbing his 62-year-old mother, Vivian Wolff, to death on Aug. 3, according to the criminal complaint. He allegedly left her body underneath a comforter in her bedroom, where it was discovered last Tuesday by friends who were checking up on her because she did not return phone messages, according to the Orange County District Attorney's
Office.

The two shared a room together in a condominium in the 14000 block of Flower Street, according to Garden Grove police Lt. Carl Whitney.

Warner was arrested after a witness saw him walking near College Avenue and Ninth Street about 1:45 p.m. Thursday and contacted police. When officers arrived and attempted to speak with Warner, he assaulted an officer and ran away but was taken into custody after a short chase, according to Whitney.

Warner was interviewed by detectives and confessed to killing his mother, Whitney alleged.

He was already on five years of formal probation, pleaded no contest April 26 of last year to a felony count of assault with force likely to produce great bodily injury and was placed on formal probation.

City News Service contributed to this report.