Suspect in triple homicide tells police he put victims ‘out of their misery’

A man accused of killing his grandmother, her boyfriend and a maintenance worker inside a southwest valley apartment told police that he was putting the victims “out of their misery,” according to court records released Wednesday.

Spencer McDonald, 30, was indicted by a grand jury on Friday on attempted murder and three other murder charges, court records show.

Police said McDonald killed his grandmother, 80-year-old Dina Vail, and her boyfriend, 43-year-old Andrew Graden, and lived with their bodies for several days before he was discovered at an apartment complex at 9105 Flamingo Road.

When maintenance workers went to conduct a welfare check on Vail, who hadn’t been seen for several days, McDonald also fatally stabbed 45-year-old Christopher Brassard.

Confession to police

Transcripts from a July 13 grand jury hearing released Wednesday detail the events surrounding McDonald’s arrest on June 27.

He confessed to all three killings in an interview with police after his arrest, a detective told grand jurors.

“Did you ask him why he did what he did to all these people?” Chief Deputy District Attorney John Giordani asked the detective during the grand jury hearing.

“He just kind of described it as putting them out of their misery, as an honorable deed, and then didn’t give any other clarification or justification as to why,” the detective testified.

McDonald also told police his plan was to cut up the bodies with an axe and put them down the garbage disposal, “but then he realized that was probably going to be a little bit more work than he planned on,” the detective testified.

History of mental illness

McDonald also appeared for a brief court hearing on Wednesday morning.

After the hearing, Deputy Public Defender Scott Coffee said McDonald has a 10-year history of mental health issues.

“We’re in the process of gathering records to verify that,” Coffee said.

Prosecutors also filed court documents Wednesday indicating the state reserves the right to formally seek the death penalty for McDonald.

During the grand jury hearing, the owner of a dance studio where Vail taught testified that he became worried when Vail didn’t show up to teach on June 26. He said the last time he had spoken to her was the Friday before, on June 23. He went to knock on Vail’s door the day she didn’t show up to teach, but no one answered.

On June 27, the man said he called the police non-emergency line, 311, and was placed on hold while he drove to the apartment complex, where he met with employees in the lobby, according to the court transcripts. One maintenance man went to check on Vail, but returned when no one answered his knocks.

Apartment attacks

That’s when Brassard and Horacio Carlin, a maintenance supervisor, grabbed the apartment’s keys and went to check on Vail themselves. Carlin testified to the grand jury that they noticed an odd smell coming from Vail’s apartment when they arrived.

Again, no one answered at the sound of knocks. The two men used the keys to open the door, and Carlin testified that he saw blood on the walls. Carlin said he suggested calling the police right before he heard Brassard scream, and he saw McDonald holding what he thought was a sledgehammer, Carlin testified.

Carlin said he was struck in the back with the weapon when he turned to run.

Brassard was attacked and fatally stabbed inside the apartment, police said. When McDonald was arrested, he was holding what detectives described as a 5-pound “CrossFit mace.” A 20-pound mace was also found in the apartment.

Vail’s body was found lying on her bed, covered by several pillows. McDonald told police that several days before he was arrested, he went into her room at night and attacked her with a “cosplay sword” and then stabbed her in the head with a kitchen knife, a detective testified. A dented, large sword used for costumes was found in the apartment with blood on it.

Graden returned to the apartment several hours later, and McDonald told police he attacked Graden with a mace and kitchen knife before dragging his body into the bedroom, according to the transcripts.

McDonald is scheduled to appear in court again on Sept. 28. He remains in the Clark County Detention Center without bail.

Contact Katelyn Newberg at knewberg@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0240. Follow @k_newberg on Twitter.