A Lewisville police affidavit alleges that Bobbie J. and Fred Mitchell’s grandson may have premeditated the attack on the county commissioner and her husband and broke into their house, even though he lived with them.
Mitchell Blake Reinacher, 23, is charged with murder in the stabbing death of Fred Mitchell and aggravated assault with a deadly weapon for the injuries Commissioner Bobbie Mitchell sustained early Monday.
That day, Lewisville 911 dispatchers received a call from the couple’s home in the 1000 block of Springwood Drive.
The affidavit states that the call taker could hear a lot of screaming, and it sounded like there was a physical struggle. The caller, whom the affidavit does not name, reported there was someone with a knife.
When the first police officer arrived, the affidavit states, she observed a white four-door vehicle — later identified as Reinacher’s — parked outside the house about two feet from the curb. The vehicle’s driver door was ajar, and the headlights were still on.
The front door was open, the affidavit states, and the officer could hear screaming inside. When the officer entered, she reported seeing Reinacher standing in the hallway over Fred Mitchell, who was bleeding profusely from the chest.
The officer handcuffed Reinacher, removed him from the house and detained him outside.
The affidavit states that Bobbie Mitchell told the officer that her grandson broke into the house, told them he was going to kill them, grabbed a knife from their kitchen, entered their bedroom and began stabbing them both.
Medics arrived and transported Fred Mitchell to a local hospital, but he died of his injuries at 4:55 a.m.
Bobbie Mitchell underwent emergency surgery because her heart was wounded in the stabbing, the affidavit states. She was recovering in the hospital as of Wednesday.
After the Mitchells were hospitalized, officers attempted to speak with Reinacher, but he declined to make a statement.
Officers obtained a search warrant for the home. The affidavit states there was evidence of forced entry at the door.
Officers also located a 6-inch serrated steak knife with blood and a blade that was bent at a 90-degree angle. This, the affidavit states, indicated to police “the amount of violent force with which it was wielded against Fred and Bobbie Mitchell.”
Reinacher’s permanent address is listed as his parent’s address elsewhere in Lewisville, although he had been living with his grandparents since late last year and is unemployed, according to the affidavit.
However, the affidavit states that the manner in which Reinacher left his vehicle outside indicates he did not intend to stay upon returning home. It “is more indicative of someone planning for an immediate getaway,” the affidavit states.
Reinacher remained in the Denton County Jail as of Wednesday afternoon. His bail is set at $500,000 for the murder charge and $100,000 for the aggravated assault charge.
If Reinacher were to bail out of jail, a Denton County court order states that he is barred from contacting Bobbie Mitchell and “all members of her family” and from visiting the home.