Naperville Babysitter Charged With Stabbing 2 Young Girls: Prosecutor

NAPERVILLE, IL ­— A 51-year-old Naperville woman has been denied pre-trial release after prosecutors maintain that she stabbed two young girls she was babysitting for in November after investigators found a bloody knife next to empty bottles of wine and rum, prosecutors said on Wednesday.

Jennifer Kouchoukos appeared in court Wednesday and is facing two counts of attempted murder and two counts of aggravated battery to a child under the age of 13, the DuPage County State’s Attorney’s Office announced. Kouchoukos is accused of stabbing two girls, ages 4 and 1, multiple times in the back and chest while babysitting the girls at their Lisle home in November, prosecutors said.

Police were called to the home on Mattson Lane at 5:15 p.m. on Nov. 17 for the report of an attempted suicide. Prosecutors that that officers found one of the children sitting in a bathroom covered in blood and the other child sitting nearby on the kitchen floor, also covered in blood. Officers also found Kouchoukos wearing blood-soaked clothing near the vanity in the same bathroom as the first child, the county state's attorney's office said.

The children were immediately taken to a local hospital for medical attention and subsequently transferred to Comer Children’s Hospital in Chicago, prosecutors said. Kouchoukos, who was unresponsive to any questions or commands, was taken to a local hospital for medical attention.

Following a police investigation, prosecutors allege that while Kouchoukos was babysitting the children, she stabbed both children multiple times in their back and chest. During their investigation, detectives found multiple knives stained with what appeared to be blood, an empty bottle of wine and a nearly empty bottle of rum.

Kouchoukos was released from the hospital on Tuesday and taken to the DuPage County Jail. Prosecutors asked a judge on Wednesday to order a psychiatric evaluation of Kouchoukos.

“This is an extremely disturbing case for all those involved,” DuPage County State’s Attorney Bob Berlin said in a statement issued on Wednesday. “We are all very grateful that the injuries sustained by the young girls in this case were not life-threatening and that they both appear to be on the road to recovery.”

Kouchoukos’ next court appearance is scheduled for January 12 for arraignment.

“What a horrific incident our officers were faced with, I cannot praise them enough,” Lisle Police Chief Kevin Licko said. “Once they knew there were injured children inside, the officers rushed into the house without hesitation. I commend them for executing their job skillfully and professionally.”