A New Hampshire man, aged 47, is facing a life sentence for the brutal murder of his mother, a crime that involved stabbing her over 20 times and nearly severing her head. The violent incident reportedly erupted from a dispute over the loudness of a video game he was playing. On Tuesday, Judge N. William Delker of the New Hampshire Superior Court sentenced Thomas Humphrey to 40 years to life in a state correctional facility for the murder of 70-year-old Linda Tufts.
Humphrey had earlier admitted to one count of second-degree murder in connection with the fatal attack. In addition, he pleaded guilty to a count of felony arson for setting his mother’s body on fire after the murder. As a result, he received a suspended sentence of five to 10 years in prison, which will be served consecutively to the life sentence.
During the sentencing hearing, Judge Delker took the opportunity to comment on the extreme cruelty of Humphrey’s actions. He described the murder as one of the most brutal he had presided over in his more than a decade on the bench. He emphasized that the severity of the crime warranted a lengthy state prison sentence due to the danger Humphrey posed to society.
Prior to the murder, Humphrey had been residing in the basement of his mother’s home in Goffstown, New Hampshire. The fatal incident occurred on the afternoon of December 4, 2023, when Humphrey was playing a video game on a PlayStation console, a gift from Tufts for his 47th birthday. An argument over the volume of the game escalated, leading Humphrey to attack and stab his mother 22 times. Following the stabbing, he set her body and the house on fire.
Emergency services, including police, firefighters, and medical personnel, responded to the scene at approximately 2:20 p.m. Upon arrival, they discovered an active fire. After putting out the fire and entering the house, they found a deceased adult female, later identified as Tufts, with apparent stab wounds. Humphrey was also found inside the house, holding a knife and with self-inflicted stab wounds. He was taken to a local hospital for treatment before being charged with his mother’s murder.
According to a neighbor, Humphrey’s parents had previously evicted him from their home, only recently allowing him to return. At the time of the fatal attack, Humphrey’s father was reportedly at work.