Isabella Guzman

 

Isabella Guzman is a Colorado woman who gained notoriety in 2013 for the brutal murder of her mother, Yun-Mi Hoy, at the age of 18. After being found not guilty by reason of insanity due to schizophrenia, she was committed to a mental health facility.

Case Details

The Incident: On August 28, 2013, in Aurora, Colorado, Guzman stabbed her mother 79 times in the face and neck in their bathroom.

Background: Before the murder, there was intense hostility between18-year-old Guzman and her mother, including a threatening note left by Guzman that read, "You will pay".

Mental State: A doctor testified that Guzman suffered from schizophrenia and believed she was killing a woman named "Cecelia" to save the world, rather than her mother.

Legal Outcome: In 2014, she pleaded not guilty by reason of insanity and was sent to the Colorado Mental Health Institute in Pueblo.

Post-Conviction and Viral Fame

TikTok Virality: In 2020, years after the incident, footage from her 2013 court appearance went viral on TikTok, where users commented on her expressionless demeanor.

Requests for Release: Guzman has stated in interviews that her sanity has been restored through medication and that she was not in her right mind at the time of the attack.

Current Status: As of June 2021, a judge ruled that Guzman could leave the state hospital for supervised, off-campus therapy, requiring her to wear a GPS tracker.

Allegations of Abuse

Guzman has claimed she was a victim of abuse at home, which she alleges worsened after she left the Jehovah's Witness religion at age 14. She also claimed she was sexually assaulted by a hospital employee while in custody.