Victoria Smith, a 60-year-old Leavenworth resident pleaded no-contest to killing Anna Higgins, her mother. Sentencing is set July 21 at 10 am, according to County Attorney Todd Thompson.

On July 3, 2016, Leavenworth Police Department responded to a 911 call at 1024 6th Avenue, Leavenworth, Kansas.

When officers arrived they heard Smith screaming that she had killed someone. Smith, who lived alone but in a home owned by her mother, later admitted she was surprised to be awakened by her Higgins. Smith then hit her mother with a flashlight outside her bedroom door.

Thompson said upon realizing what she did, Smith then took her mother from the doorway to the main living room where she then proceeded to strike her several more times with a mallet. Higgins was found dead on the scene.

Smith was found guilty of second degree intentional murder. Thompson said that the plea met with the approval of the family. “We are only glad to have a resolution on this case for the family,” Thompson said. “This is a sad situation all the way around.”