St. Pete Mother Charged With Murder Of 4-Year-Old Son: Police

ST. PETERSBURG, FL — After being released from the hospital overnight, a mother was arrested for killing her 4-year-old son, St. Petersburg police said in a news release.

Diane Cullom, 43, was charged with first-degree murder in the death of her son, Finley Cullom.

Though investigators initially thought the boy had been stabbed to death, the medical examiner determined while examining his body that there were no stab wounds and he had been suffocated, police said.

His mother was found at their home with self-inflicted stab wounds.

• Also Read: Boy, 4, Found Stabbed To Death, Mother Injured At St. Pete Home: Reports

Patrol officers responded to reports of a person bleeding at the home on Tanglewood Drive NE on Tuesday around 3:30 p.m.

When they arrived, they found a 16-year-old girl, who told them that when she got home from school she found her mother holding her brother in a bed, police said.

There was blood at the scene and throughout the house.

The mother was brought to Bayfront Hospital with multiple cuts and stab wounds. Her injuries weren't life-threatening.

A note was also found at the scene, police previously said.

The investigation is still active and the scene is still being processed Wednesday morning, detectives said.

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