A man from Florida is facing accusations of fatally stabbing his estranged girlfriend up to 70 times during a home invasion on Friday. This incident occurred exactly one month after the man, James Christopher Lindsey, 42, was arrested for assaulting the same woman and was instructed to keep his distance from her. Lindsey allegedly murdered 40-year-old Kristin Stevens after breaking into her Chuluota residence around 1 a.m., upon discovering she had gone on a date with another man, as reported by the Seminole County Sheriff’s Office.
Lindsey, who was due to be arraigned on a domestic violence battery charge against Stevens on the same day of the brutal murder, was found dead in a car crash on Fort Christmas Road in Orange County a few hours after fleeing the crime scene. The couple, who had a long history of domestic violence incidents involving law enforcement, had been in an on-and-off relationship for 18 years and had a 16-year-old son together. The son was present but unharmed during the deadly home invasion.
Sheriff Dennis Lemma expressed his sorrow over the tragic incident, stating, “This is a heartbreaking and traumatic incident that will have a lasting impact on families and a community.” He also commended his deputies’ quick response to the scene and the detectives’ tireless efforts in piecing together the case.
Upon arriving at Stevens’ home, police discovered the victim with approximately 70 stab wounds, presumably inflicted with a kitchen knife. An unidentified man, who was also a victim, reported that Lindsey had attacked Stevens, stabbing her multiple times after breaking into the house with a hammer. The man was stabbed in the leg while trying to fend off Lindsey before he managed to escape to a neighbor’s house and call the police.
Lindsey fled the scene and was found dead about four hours later at the site of a single-car accident. Reports suggest he had been driving at a speed of 100 miles per hour and lost control of the vehicle. Lindsey’s last arrest was on November 6 for an assault on Stevens, where he was charged with domestic violence battery. He was ordered to surrender 21 firearms and ammunition and was released on a $1,000 bond with a no-contact order. Despite police requests for Lindsey to wear an ankle monitor as a condition of his bond, a judge denied this plea.
In the aftermath of the tragedy, Kori Alvarez Resto, a close friend of the victim, started a GoFundMe campaign to raise funds for the couple’s surviving son and to advocate for stricter monitoring of domestic violence offenders. The fundraising page has since raised over $6,000.