In a disturbing turn of events, a mother in North Dakota reportedly sent a threatening video to her children’s father just before launching a violent attack on them, authorities have revealed.
Kailey Erhart, aged 22, is accused of fatally stabbing her daughters, Morgan, age three, and Ava, just five months old, at her residence in Mandan last Thursday evening. This information comes from an affidavit obtained by KVLY.
The tragic event also left her one-year-old son, Colton, seriously injured. Despite the violent assault, Colton survived after receiving extensive and urgent medical care.
According to the affidavit, Erhart’s “horrific” act followed a confrontation where she allegedly brandished a firearm at her estranged spouse, Cameron, subsequently forcing him and the children’s grandmother to flee the house as she pursued them with a knife.
Responding officers discovered Erhart at the scene, reportedly drenched in blood and holding a kitchen knife against her own throat, posing an ongoing threat to herself.
Officers found the three children lying on the floor after following a trail of blood to a nearby bedroom, the filing said. They were unresponsive and had wounds on their necks, per the document.
Before the attack, Erhart texted a video to Cameron warning him to ‘say goodbye to your kids,’ the affidavit said.
The footage allegedly showed her carrying one child with a pistol on her hip.
Erhart was arrested at the scene and faces nine charges, including two counts of murder, one count of attempted murder and multiple counts of aggravated assault and terrorizing. She has not yet entered a plea.
Kailey Erhart is accused of knifing her three young children in her Mandan, North Dakota home on Thursday in what police have called a ‘horrific’ attack
Her daughters Morgan, three, and Ava, five months, were killed in the attack. Erhart’s one-year-old son survived, but sustained serious injuries
A judge has set Erhart’s cash bond at $3 million, according to Burleigh Morton Detention Center inmate records reviewed by the Daily Mail.
A formal no-contact order has also been put in place, barring the accused killer from contacting the surviving child or family members.
Her preliminary hearing and arraignment have been set for October 6.
Police said that Erhart and Cameron were in the midst of a separation at the time of the deadly attack. He allegedly planned to file for divorce.
Erhart had an apparent history of mental illness, with the young mother admitting to having suffered from postpartum depression after Morgan’s birth three years ago.
‘This last month and a half have definitely been some of the hardest times I have been through,’ she wrote in a Facebook post in April 2023, the Daily Mail can reveal.
‘I love Morgan to pieces and I’m so glad she’s here, but my postpartum depression has definitely kicked my butt at times. Sometimes I feel so alone and stuck like nobody is there for me and I have nobody to talk to and sometimes I wish I would have waited to have Morgan.
‘It’s definitely been a wild ride considering I’ve felt so depressed and I thought Morgan would be better off with me gone, and other times like I don’t know where I’d be without her.’
Erhart, 22, faces nine charges, including two counts of murder, one count of attempted murder and multiple counts of aggravated assault and terrorizing. She is being held at the Burleigh Morton Detention Center on a $3 million cash bail
Erhart and her husband, Cameron, were in the midst of a separation at the time of the attack
She went on to say that she was ‘one lucky mama to have this little girl with me everyday’ and claimed that ‘adorable’ Morgan has ‘definitely helped me out in more ways then [sic] one.’
Erhart had also been institutionalized over alleged mental health concerns about 12 to 18 months prior to Thursday’s attack, the affidavit said.
She had allegedly threatened to hurt herself and the children but was cleared to be around them after being discharged from the facility.
Erhart told police during questioning that she did not remember what happened during the deadly attack last week.
She claimed to have put the children to bed and told officers she believed their throats had been slit before then, the affidavit said.
She did remember holding the knife in her hands when officers arrived at the home, according to the court document.
Mandan Police Chief Jason Ziegler, during a press conference, described the crime scene as ‘one of the most horrific’ that his officers are likely to ever encounter.
‘I want to acknowledge this is an extreme, tragic and heartbreaking incident for the children involved, their families, our community and first responders who arrived on scene,’ he said, KFYR reported. ‘Our thoughts are with everyone that were impacted.’
A GoFundMe campaign has been created to support Cameron and his one-year-old son
Police say Erhart and Cameron got into a physical altercation before her alleged killing spree at their home
Erhart appears in court before Judge Marina Spahr, who set her bail at $3 million. Her preliminary hearing and arraignment have been set for October 6
Police say Erhart and Cameron got into a physical altercation before her alleged killing spree.
She threatened him with the gun she had recently purchased, but he managed to disarm her during the struggle, which saw her bite and scratch him, the report said.
Cameron took the weapon apart and scattered the pieces, police said.
A GoFundMe campaign has been created to support Cameron and Colton during this difficult time.
‘He is a father trying to survive something no parent should ever have to face,’ the fundraiser said.
‘I lost two precious souls in a devastating tragedy after they were murdered by their mother, and the pain is more than I can put into words.
‘Every day, we are carrying unimaginable grief while also trying to stay strong for his surviving child, who is receiving ongoing medical care and facing challenges no child should ever have to endure.’
The fundraiser has already amassed more than $26,000 in donations.
The Daily Mail reached out to Erhart’s lawyer for comment.