New Jersey Man Accused of Fatally Beating Mother During Dispute Over Plan to Cut off His Leg Tattoo
March 13 2024, Published 4:03 p.m. ET
A New Jersey man has been arrested after police say he killed his mother during a dispute over a leg tattoo.
On March 2, police discovered the body of 65-year-old Lillian Doran at a home in Blackwood. The victim suffered trauma to the back of her head, according to an affidavit obtained by People.
Responding officers said the suspect, later identified as 30-year-old James Doran, had already fled the residence by the time they arrived and the victim's vehicle was missing.
A witness told investigators that they heard “banging sounds and a garage door opening at about 4 a.m.”
Per the affidavit, witnesses said the previous evening, the victim and James Doran were arguing about James Doran walking around the house with a baseball bat and cutting the tattoo off his leg.
Later the same day, Pennsylvania state troopers spotted James Doran going 112 mph in his mother’s vehicle around 200 miles away from where the murder occurred.
Officers said Doran pulled over when he spotted a state trooper’s vehicle following him, but he then fled the car and ran into the woods.
After a short pursuit on foot, troopers apprehended the suspect.
Police said Doran, who was covered in blood, was acting erratically and refused to identify himself to officers. They also noted the suspect's breath smelled of alcohol.
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Officers searched Doran's vehicle and found a baseball bat and several bottles of alcohol.
According to police, the suspect refused to allow a legal blood draw. He was being held without bail after he was arrested and charged with murder, recklessly endangering another person, evading arrest, DUI, and reckless driving, police said.
He was expected to be extradited to New Jersey from the Bedford County jail in Pennsylvania.
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