An 18-year-old Campbell County man who was 17 when he stabbed his mother in the back last summer was sentenced Tuesday to between 20 and 30 years in prison for attempted second-degree murder.

Tharles Smith was also ordered to pay $9,853.34 in restitution.

Tharles Smith and his mother Karla Smith had an argument the night of June 10, 2024, at their home in rural Campbell County over whether it was time for the teen to live apart from his family in a mobile home they were preparing for him.

He was four months shy of his 18th birthday and had been committed to multiple mental health institutions.

When Karla went to bed that night, Tharles Smith stabbed her in the back, plunging an 8-inch blade two-thirds of the way into her chest cavity, breaking her shoulder blade and puncturing her lung

See Full Page