Man Pleads Guilty, But Mentally Ill, To Killing Mother

WOODSTOCK, GA — A Woodstock man last week entered a guilty plea to killing his mother and attacking an inmate at the Cherokee County Adult Detention Center in 2016.

Michael Jacobs on Nov. 2 pleaded guilty, but mentally, ill to one count of malice murder and three counts of aggravated assault under the Family Violence Act in the January 2016 stabbing death of his mother.

Jacobs, 24, was sentenced to serve a life sentence with the possibility of parole. He was also given credit for time served since he was incarcerated on Jan. 3, 2016. If granted parole, Jacobs will be prohibited from having any contact with immediate maternal family members unless asked to do so in writing by those relatives.

He must also follow the recommended health treatment plan and take all prescribed medications as directed. Of course, he will not be allowed to possess any firearms or consume alcohol or illegal drugs.

Cherokee sheriff's deputies were dispatched to a call around 9 p.m. Jan. 3, 2016, at the Brooke Mill Apartments on Downsby Lane after Jacobs told 911 dispatchers he killed his mom during a dispute, the agency previously said.

Deputies arrived at the apartment unit and found Jacobs' mother, 54-year-old Melony Jacobs, dead inside the apartment. Michael Jacobs was transported to Northside Hospital-Cherokee for treatment to injuries in his hands and later booked into the Cherokee County Adult Detention Center.

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According to an indictment handed down by a Cherokee County grand jury, the woman suffered multiple stab wounds to her head, neck, torso and extremities.

A day after he was booked into the jail, Jacobs was charged with aggravated assault after he tried to choke another inmate in the medical wing. The sheriff's office said the encounter took place in front of deputies while food was being distributed to the inmates.

For that incident, he also pleaded guilty, but mentally ill, to the attack and was sentenced to serve 20 years. That sentence will run concurrent to his life in prison sentence for the murder plea.

Photo: Michael Jacobs: Credit: Cherokee Sheriff's Office