NEW YORK (1010 WINS/WCBS 880) — A mother from Pennsylvania was convicted of murder on Thursday for strangling her 11-year-old son to death last spring before fleeing to the Jersey Shore and driving her SUV into the ocean.
Ruth DiRienzo-Whitehead, 51, of Horsham, Pa., was found guilty of first-degree murder and possessing the instrument of a crime in a bench trial, the Montgomery County District Attorney’s Office said.
Just after 7 a.m. on April 11, 2023, 11-year-old Matthew Whitehead’s father called 911 after discovering him dead in the family’s master bedroom where he had been sleeping next to his mother, authorities said. An autopsy revealed that Matthew was strangled.
DiRienzo-Whitehead’s black Toyota Highlander was missing from the garage, and was later found partially submerged in the ocean by Cape May, NJ police. Authorities found a black men’s dress belt on the floor of the driver’s side of the vehicle, according to arrest records.
The defendant herself was discovered alive and walking, a short time later, by Wildwood Crest police over 120 miles away from her home in Hashom.
According to an affidavit obtained by Patch, DiRienzo-Whitehead admitted to strangling Matthew with the belt after he had been "upset and crying off and on all day" about the family’s financial struggles.
In the fall DiRienzo-Whitehead’s lawyers reportedly motioned for an insanity defense, though prosecutors argued the murder was premeditated.
CBS reported that she had made numerous online searches on how to strangle someone and mental illnesses that lead mothers to kill their own children.
DiRienzo-Whitehead will be sentenced on Friday, where she is expected to receive a mandatory life sentence, officials said. Victim impact statements are also expected to be read.