SANTA ANA, Calif. – A Southern California prosecutor says a jealous wife yelled "You deserve it" before severing her estranged husband's penis with a 10-inch kitchen knife and throwing it in a garbage disposal.
The Orange County Register reports (http://bit.ly/10hqAby ) a jury heard opening statements Wednesday in the case of 50-year-old Catherine Kieu, who is accused of drugging her husband's tofu with sleeping pills and tying him to a bed before the attack.
Deputy District Attorney John Christl says audio of the July 11, 2011, incident was captured by a voice-activated recorder Kieu had hidden in the bedroom.
Deputy Public Defender Frank Bittar says Kieu's severely traumatic childhood in war-torn Vietnam, including rape by her older brother, caused mental illness that bars her from a mayhem or torture conviction.
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Information from: The Orange County Register, http://www.ocregister.com
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