Seattle woman allegedly murders father with an ice axe over mundane household disagreement

Corey Burke, 33, has been charged with the murder of her father, Timothy Burke, 67, in Seattle, Washington, after an alleged mental health crisis. On the evening of November 5, 2024, Timothy was found dead at their shared home, with Corey found outside the house covered in blood. Authorities say the crime occurred after a heated argument between the two over turning off lights in the house. Corey later confessed to police that she struck her father multiple times with an ice axe, bit and strangled him to death, and then broke windows in the home.

Corey reportedly told the police that she had been struggling with her relationship with her father and felt overwhelmed by the situation. She described feeling “hyper-focused” and “disorganized” regarding her attachment to him. According to legal documents, Corey also stated that she “freaked out” during the argument and later admitted to the murder. After being taken for a mental health evaluation, Corey was charged with first-degree murder and held on $2 million bail. Despite confessing, she pleaded not guilty to the charges, likely in preparation for an insanity defense.

Some reports have suggested that the murder was politically motivated, citing that it happened on election day, November 5. However, no concrete evidence supports this claim, and the idea that the murder was connected to her father being a Trump supporter remains unverified. Corey did mention to the police that she knew something important was related to election day, but there are no further details connecting politics directly to the crime.

Corey’s background includes working as a Training Program Manager at Blue Origin, a company owned by Jeff Bezos. She is married to Samantha Leigh Allen, a former Daily Beast reporter and LGBTQ+ author. There is no publicly available information to suggest that her wife or gender politics played a role in the incident, despite some media outlets speculating on these issues. Additionally, neighbors reported that they had not seen Allen at the house where the crime occurred.