Carnation murder case: 'I knew she was eventually going to hurt someone'

SEATTLE -- In the Carnation murder case, a woman who has not yet faced a jury is now the focus at her boyfriend’s trial.

Joe McEnroe could face the death penalty in the killings of Michele Anderson’s six family members. He has admitted to police his part in shooting and killing his girlfriend’s family, including pulling the trigger on her young niece and nephew.

But on Thursday, jurors heard from another one of Anderson’s former boyfriends, Marc Mann. He called her unstable and told them he’s not surprised she turned violent.

“I knew she was eventually going to hurt someone,” said Mann. “You have a feeling. You just know it’s going to happen.”



McEnroe’s defense team continues to focus on Michele Anderson, who they say pushed McEnroe into taking part in the killings.

In her own confession to police, Anderson said she felt slighted and angry at her brother, Scott, for not paying back a loan, and held it against the rest of her family for not backing her. That led to the plan to kill them on Christmas Eve 2007.

“Yes, it was premeditated and yes, I was fed up with everything,” Anderson said during police interviews.

On the witness stand, Mann described Anderson as angry, controlling and paranoid, and said she became more unstable when she began taking anti-depressants off and on. He also told jurors she sometimes wanted to hurt or kill people.

“She didn’t like people and she thought people didn’t like her,” said Mann. “She felt that everyone was cruel, abusive monsters.”

McEnroe’s defense team hopes that by convincing jurors that McEnroe was pushed by Anderson to take part in the killings that he can avoid the death penalty.

Michelle Anderson’s murder trial is scheduled for next fall.