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Florida mom shared eerie final photo before she was allegedly stabbed to death by son, 17, a year after he killed his dad

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Florida mom shared eerie final photo before she was allegedly stabbed to death by son, 17, a year after he killed his dad


The Florida mom allegedly stabbed in the neck by her knife-wielding teenage son over the weekend posted a haunting final message on Instagram the day before her gruesome murder.

Catherine “Cathy” Griffith, 39, was found dead in her Auburndale home by police officers who were called by her son, Collin.

Cops arrived to find her dead, with a knife wound to her neck, and the 17-year-old covered in her blood standing in front of the house.

Collin Griffin is accused of fatally stabbing his mom, Catherine, inside her Auburndale, FL. home on Sunday. Instagram/@cathygriffith1985

“That old familiar body ache, the snaps from the same little breaks in your soul. You know when it’s time to go…Sometimes, givin’ up is the strong thing,” Catherine Griffith eerily captioned an Instagram post with lyrics from Taylor Swift’s “It’s Time to Go” with an image of a remote footbridge leading into a forest.

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Happy times with Collin are seen in many posts on his mom’s feed, including one from May 5, where he is pictured in front of a bow-clad car.

“Happy early graduation present!!! Congratulations Collin on your brand new 2024 VW Jetta!!! I love you and am so proud of you!!!”

A series of posts from the Fourth of July weekend shows the smiling mother and son galavanting around Washington, DC, where they took in the fireworks on the National Mall and even toured the White House.

In many photos, the pair pose in the same position: Cathy in front, Collin right behind her, squinting through chunky plastic black-frame glasses.

The loving mother gave her son a new 2024 VW Jetta for his graduation gift. Instagram/@cathygriffith1985

“I’ve learned some of the hardest lessons in my 30’s but I’m vowing that my 39th year will be a year of living life to its fullest,” she wrote on Sept. 5, the day after her 39th birthday.

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Deputies arriving at the scene Sunday said that Collin showed “zero emotion” after allegedly killing his mother.

Neighbors say that they saw him grab Cathy by the hair and pull her into the house as she repeatedly pleaded, “Let me go” before her body was discovered.

Collin told police that he and his mother were in the midst of a long physical fight, which resulted in her falling onto the knife — fatally lacerating her throat.

In many photos, the pair pose in the same position: Cathy in front, Collin right behind her, squinting through chunky plastic black-frame glasses. Instagram/@cathygriffith1985
The Polk County Sheriff’s Office released a photo of the knife believed to have been used in the fatal stabbing. Polk County Sheriff’s Office

However, he quickly asked for a lawyer when investigators pressed him on the incongruities of his story with the evidence at the scene.

Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd described the scene as “cold-blooded murder.”

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Collin had a history of abusing his mother, attacking her multiple times — including “stomping” on her — which resulted in the teen being held for mental health concerns.

Collin told police that he and his mother were in the midst of a long physical fight, which resulted in her falling onto the knife — fatally lacerating her throat. WFLA

Upon release from that stint in the state’s care, Collin allegedly threatened to kill himself or Cathy.

Cathy’s death comes roughly a year and a half after Collin was charged with fatally shooting his father, Charles, in their Lincoln County, Okla., home on Feb. 14, 2023.

No one else was home at the time. The then-15-year-old then told police that his father had cornered him in the house and, in an act of self-defense, he shot him once in the chest and once in the head.

Cathy’s death comes roughly a year and a half after Collin was charged with fatally shooting his father, Charles, in their Lincoln County, Okla., home on Feb. 14, 2023. Polk County Sheriff’s Office

The murder charge was dropped after Oklahoma authorities could not find evidence that disputed Collin’s claim of self-defense, Judd said.

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Cathy Griffith shared a compilation of photos of her and Collin with Charles — including a shot of his headstone on Aug. 25.

“We broke the pattern but the pattern still broke us all into pieces. I still don’t regret leaving. I regret not leaving sooner,” a caption over the photos read.

Collin is being charged with first-degree murder, kidnapping and violation of a no-contact order. The PCSO requested he be tried as an adult.

With Post wires

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South Florida powers clash in dramatic championship matchups: High School Hightlights

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South Florida powers clash in dramatic championship matchups: High School Hightlights




South Florida powers clash in dramatic championship matchups: High School Hightlights – CBS Miami

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The final Friday night of high school football delivered two dramatic South Florida championship matchups.

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Read Florida’s lawsuit against Roblox

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Read Florida’s lawsuit against Roblox


The Florida Attorney General’s Office on Thursday, Dec. 11, filed a lawsuit against popular online gaming platform Roblox, accusing the company of failing to protect its millions of underage users from predatory adults who would “find, groom, and abuse children.”

“Roblox aggressively markets to young children, but fails to protect them from sexual predators,” Attorney General James Uthmeier said in a post to X. “As a father of three little ones and as Florida’s attorney general, my number one priority is simple: to protect our kids.”

The lawsuit claims Florida children have been talked into taking and sending sexual images of themselves and lists several recent incidences, including a 20-year-old California man arrested last month for having sexually explicit conversations with a Palm Coast child and asking for nude photos.

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A Roblox spokesperson said the lawsuit “fundamentally misrepresents how Roblox works.”

“We have advanced safeguards that monitor our platform for harmful content and communications,” Roblox Chief Safety Officer Matt Kaufman said in a statement, adding that the company — currently the most downloaded game in the world — will be rolling out additional safeguards “beyond what is required by law and what other platforms do.”

Read Florida’s lawsuit against Roblox

Can’t see the embedded document? Click here.

What is Roblox?

San Mateo, California-based Roblox, released in 2006, hosts millions of user-created games (or “experiences”) constructed with the platform’s built-in game engine. Any user can create a game and share it with others, and there are millions of games available of all types.

The game platform and most games are free to use, but some cost to play. There is also a thriving economy based on Robux, an in-game virtual currency used to purchase virtual items. Roblox offers a subscription service called Roblox Premium that provides access to more features and a monthly allowance of Roblox.

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Voice chat is available, but only for users aged 13 or older with verified ages. Age ratings were introduced for games in 2022, and in 2023, 17+ games were permitted to include more graphic violence, romance, and drinking.

According to Roblox, as of 2020, the monthly playerbase included half of all American children under the age of 16.





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Florida’s complete 2026 football schedule unveiled

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Florida’s complete 2026 football schedule unveiled


GAINESVILLE, Fla. — The 2026 football schedule for the Florida Gators has been set. Next year’s slate was unveiled Thursday night on SEC Network.

The most notable dates are Florida’s SEC opener on Sept. 19 — a Week 3 trip to Auburn, where the Gators haven’t played since 2011 — along with a road game at Texas on Oct. 17 and home games against Ole Miss (Sept. 26) and Oklahoma (Nov. 7).

Next season will mark the Sooners’ first-ever visit to Gainesville. The teams have previously played twice in the postseason, with the Gators defeating Oklahoma 24-14 in their first-ever meeting to win the 2008 national championship.

The Gators open the season in The Swamp on Sept. 5 against Florida Atlantic. UF’s other non-conference opponents will be Campbell (Sept. 12) and at Florida State (Nov. 28).

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Florida is also hosting South Carolina (Oct. 10) and Vanderbilt (Nov. 21). The Gators haven’t played the Gamecocks or the Commodores since 2023.

UF takes on Georgia in Atlanta on Oct. 31 after the bye week. Florida’s other road games are Missouri (Oct. 3), Texas (Oct. 17) and Kentucky (Nov. 14).

The Gators will be led by first-year coach Jon Sumrall. He won the American Conference title with Tulane last week and has the Green Wave in the College Football Playoffs. They will have a rematch against Ole Miss on Dec. 20 in the first round after losing in Oxford, 45-10, on Sept. 20.

Sumrall was back in Gainesville this week to assemble his staff. So far, he has hired offensive coordinator Buster Faulkner, defensive coordinator Brade White and defensive line coach Gerald Chatman.

Date Opponent Location
Sept. 5 Florida Atlantic Gainesville, Florida
Sept. 12 Campbell Gainesville, Florida
Sept. 19 at Auburn Auburn, Alabama
Sept. 26 Ole Miss Gainesville, Florida
Oct. 3 at Missouri Columbia, Missouri
Oct. 10 South Carolina Gainesville, Florida
Oct. 17 at Texas Austin, Texas
Oct. 24 Bye
Oct. 31 Georgia Atlanta, Georgia
Nov. 7 Oklahoma Gainesville, Florida
Nov. 14 at Kentucky Lexington, Kentucky
Nov. 21 Vanderbilt Gainesville, Florida
Nov. 28 at Florida State Tallahassee, Florida

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