Washoe County District Attorney Chris Hicks announces that the man who killed his elderly mother in October of 2024, has been sentenced to life in prison. William Griggs, 47 years old, will be eligible for parole after 25 years.
Detectives from Reno Police were sent to Margarita Griggs’ home after the defendant called 9-1-1, saying the 81-year-old was not breathing. William Griggs, who was on disability and lived in his mother’s house, told police that he had left to run errands, and when he returned, she was lying on her bed, not breathing. He also told RPD that he had previously been diagnosed with “borderline schizo”; however, he disagreed with the diagnosis and had not been taking his mental health medication.
An autopsy of Ms. Griggs showed petechial hemorrhaging in her mouth, a broken hyoid bone, broken cartilage, bruising under her chin, scrapes and bruising along her neck, bruising on the inner side of her lower lip, bruising and abrasions on the bridge of her nose, bruising on the inside of her neck, bruising on her scalp, and an indication of blood inside of her nose and mouth. Based on the injuries, the pathologist ruled her death a homicide and determined she died from asphyxiation.
After RPD detectives confronted Griggs about inconsistencies between his story and the autopsy findings, he ultimately admitted he had attempted to suffocate and then strangled his mother with his bare hands and then went through the motions of CPR to make it appear that any injuries were due to his CPR efforts. When questioned, he acknowledged he knew his actions were wrong.
At sentencing, Chief Deputy District Attorney Luke Prengaman argued in support of the life sentence, citing Griggs’ conscious, step-by-step decision-making, awareness of the wrongfulness of his conduct, and intentional effort to cover up what he had done. The Honorable Lynne Jones presided and imposed the sentence.
