Mom Who Killed 4-Year-Old, Wounded 2 Other Children Said Kids Were 'Possessed': Reports

CHICAGO, IL — A 45-year-old Chicago mother faces charges of murder, attempted murder and arson after police say she fatally stabbed her 4-year-old son and seriously wounded her two other children before setting a Logan Square home on fire on the 4th of July. Police called the incident "domestic in nature."

Police responded to a report of a person with a knife at a home in the 3600 block of West Palmer Street just after 9 a.m. Friday.

Officials say Wendy Tolbert, 45, used a knife to stab her 4-year-old son in the chest. He was taken to Stroger Hospital, where he was pronounced dead.

The 4-year-old, identified by the Cook County Medical Examiner as Jordan Wallace, was stabbed more than three dozen times, NBC Chicago reported.

Police say Tolbert also stabbed her 10-year-old son in the right arm, and her 13-year-old daughter multiple times in the face, chest and back. The two older children were also taken to Stroger, where police said the boy was in serious condition and the girl was in critical condition.

Responding officers rendered aid to the children after gaining entrance to the burning home, police said.

Prosecutors say it was the 13-year-old who called 911 before her mother pounded on her bedroom door, and stabbed her multiple times in the face, back and chest as she tried to escape, NBC reported. When police arrived, the 10-year-old yelled for help out the window, and officers spotted Tolbert with a burning paper towel and broke out windows of the home to get to the children, according to NBC.

A 31-year-old woman and a 34-year-old man from an adjacent residence were taken to Stroger Hospital in fair condition for smoke inhalation. Police said three officers were also taken to nearby hospitals in fair condition for smoke inhalation.

Tolbert was taken into custody at the scene. She is charged with one count of first-degree murder, two counts of attempted murder, six counts of aggravated arson, two counts of aggravated battery/great bodily harm, two counts of aggravated battery/use of a deadly weapon and one count of aggravated battery to a child under 13 causing great bodily harm.

At a hearing on Sunday, it was determined Tolbert will remain in jail pending trial, according to CBS Chicago.

Prosecutors say Tolbert, who had been diagnosed with cancer and also suffers from mental illness, believed her children were possessed by the devil, the Sun-Times reported.