PALM SPRINGS, Florida — A physically disabled Palm Springs man was killed earlier this month when his wife stabbed him upward of 140 times, police said Sunday.
Joan Burke, 61, was charged with first-degree murder and held without bail Sunday morning in the Palm Beach County Jail
The Palm Springs Police Department said the body of 62-year-old Melvin Weller was found by his stepson Feb. 11, lying on the kitchen floor in a pool of blood. Family members told investigators Weller was physically disabled as he had struggled to walk and had poor grip strength.
Weller had filed to divorce Burke in December, according to court records
The police report stated the crime scene appeared to show obvious signs of a violent struggle.
Police officers found Burke lying on the bed in the main bedroom. She was “conscious and alert, but remained mute.” Burke had cuts on the palms of her hands, police said
“It is very common for the offender to have lacerations to the palm of one or both hands when he or she stabs another person,” the police report said. “This is especially true when the victim is stabbed many times, as was the case with Mr. Weller’s death.”
The Medical Examiner’s Office found that Weller was stabbed more than 140 times all over his body and was struck in the head with the meat cleaver, the police report said.