Louisville, Tennessee A Tennessee man has been sentenced to decades in prison after admitting to killing his mother and her pet cat in a violent attack that prosecutors described as unprovoked and deliberate.
According to the Blount County Sheriff’s Office, deputies responded to a call on September 8, 2023, reporting a possible death at a residence in Louisville, Tennessee. Inside the home, first responders found 63-year-old Kimberly Hayes dead from multiple stab wounds that investigators said were consistent with homicide. Authorities also discovered a cat inside the residence that had been stabbed and killed.
Investigators quickly identified Hayes’ son, Zachary Justin Hayes, then 25, as the primary suspect. He was taken into custody and later gave a recorded pre-booking interview that was played in court. In the interview, Hayes said he had not planned the killing and admitted he did not have a clear motive for stabbing his mother while she sat watching television in her living room…