Las Vegas Sun

March 18, 2024

Courts:

Case of woman accused of stabbing sister-in-law headed to grand jury

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Elinor Indico

A grand jury will weigh the case of a woman accused of fatally stabbing her pregnant sister-in-law.

Elinor Indico, 30, is charged with one count of open murder and one count of voluntary manslaughter in connection with the Oct. 16 death of Ashley Indico and her unborn child.

Elinor Indico’s attorney, Deputy Public Defender Norman Reed, said he was notified that the District Attorney’s Office would be presenting the case to a grand jury this week.

Clark County District Attorney Steve Wolfson previously told the Sun that prosecutors often take a case to a grand jury to speed it up. There are other reasons to go that route — such as not wanting to expose a witness to a public hearing or dealing with a sensitive topic — but ultimately, it is the prosecutor's call whether or not to skip the justice court process.

If Elinor Indico is indicted, the case will go straight to Clark County District Court and skip its Nov. 8 preliminary hearing.

The arrest report indicates that tension had been building in the Indico household prior to the incident that left Elinor Indico wounded and her sister-in-law dead.

Elinor Indico had been living with her brother’s family for about a month on the condition she stay off drugs and hold down a job, according to the arrest report.

When she couldn’t manage to do either, her brother Aristeo Indico told her she’d need to move out by the end of that week.

Police found Ashley Indico, who was nine months pregnant, lying dead inside her home in the 2800 block of North Rancho Drive after responding to Elinor Indico’s 911-call.

Ashley Indico’s two young children were home at the time of the incident.

When Elinor Indico opened the door for officers, they found the entrance of the home drenched in blood and were shown two stab wounds on Elinor Indico, according to the police report. She was taken to University Medical Center.

“It seems like a pretty solid case of self-defense. I think we’re going to be able to show that the decedent stabbed Elinor first, several times,” Reed said. “There is a lot more back story to the case.”

In an interview after the incident, Elinor Indico told detectives her sister-in-law had gone “stab crazy,” and she broke down crying when officers told her Ashley Indico had died, according to the police report.

“Obviously she is very emotional,” Reed said of his client. “She’s never been in jail before. She’s scared out of her mind.”

Elinor Indico’s fiancée and mother are supporting her, Reed said.

“Her mother is in a very difficult situation,” Reed said. “She loves her children, both of them. She feels like she should support both of them.”

Reed said he had spoken with Elinor Indico’s mother about possibly attending court proceedings at a later date and said he is keeping her abreast of when her appearance might be most meaningful. She is older, and because she lives in California, Reed said he did not want to advise her to risk her health or create a financial burden.

Ashley Indico’s cousin, Jamie Winters, created an online fundraiser on gofundme.com to help pay funeral expenses and to help support Aristeo Indico and his children. So far the site has raised $2,760. It has a posted goal of $15,000.

Elinor Indico remains in Clark County Detention Center on $120,000 bail.

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