Mock, 48, entered the plea before Sedgwick County District Judge Faith Johnson in connection with the Oct. 31, 2025, death of Anita Avers. She now faces a presumptive sentence of life in prison with the possibility of parole after 25 years.
Sentencing is scheduled for Oct. 5 at 11 a.m., according to local reports.
The case began shortly before 8 a.m. on Halloween morning, when Wichita police responded to a home in the 1500 block of East Crowley after receiving a report of a stabbing.
Officers found Mock outside the residence with blood on her body and injuries to her hands. Inside, police discovered Avers unresponsive in her bed with multiple stab wounds. She was taken to a hospital, where she was pronounced dead.
Investigators reported finding several kitchen knives and a cheese grater on a pillow near Avers. Blood was found on the objects, and the bedding contained multiple holes consistent with stabbing, according to court records.
A probable cause affidavit said Mock gave investigators differing accounts of what happened.
Mock told authorities she went into her mother’s bedroom to discuss an upcoming job interview and found Avers sharpening knives. According to the affidavit, Mock claimed her mother attacked her with a knife and said, “I know you’re f—ing Jesus Christ.”
Mock said she fought back, obtained a knife and tried to retreat as her mother continued advancing toward her.
“I had to kill her, she wasn’t going to stop,” Mock told investigators, according to the affidavit.
Court records also describe statements suggesting Mock believed Avers was the devil rather than her mother.
“I’d kill that b***h to have my mom back any day. I don’t even know who she is anymore. I know, I believe she’s the devil,” Mock allegedly said.
A neighbor, Alyssa Castro, previously told reporters that Mock approached the vehicle she was sitting in with her boyfriend while covered in blood and asked them to call 911.
“There was a woman who approached our vehicle with like blood, like her hands were filled, her body was filled with blood, asking to call 911,” Castro said.
“I asked her if she was OK, and she was pretty shaken up and she seemed scared, and she just ran off,” she added.
Questions about Mock’s competency delayed the case for several months.
In January, a judge found Mock incompetent to stand trial and ordered her to Larned State Hospital for evaluation and treatment.
That finding was later reversed. In July, a Sedgwick County judge determined Mock had regained competency and could proceed with the criminal case.
According to the probable cause affidavit, Mock’s stepfather told investigators that she had previously been diagnosed with bipolar disorder before the diagnosis was changed to schizoaffective disorder.
He also described past episodes in which Mock allegedly said people around her were “robots” and “not real people,” along with previous angry outbursts and psychiatric treatment.
Despite those reported incidents, Mock’s stepfather said her relationship with Avers was generally close, though the two experienced ordinary mother-daughter tensions.
Ex-TV anchor Angelynn Mock admits to stabbing own mom to death on Halloween after believing she was the devil https://t.co/wXJGnSeKrZ pic.twitter.com/jt5dKEP0LC
— New York Post (@nypost) August 26, 2026
Avers worked as a licensed clinical marriage and family therapist. Her professional biography said she treated adults experiencing depression, anxiety, trauma and mood disorders, as well as couples and families dealing with relationship problems.
Mock previously worked in broadcast journalism. She served as a morning anchor at KTVI Fox 2 in St. Louis from 2011 to 2015 and earlier worked as a sports reporter at KLKN in Lincoln, Nebraska.
The Sedgwick County District Attorney’s Office charged Mock with first-degree murder in November 2025 following an investigation by the Wichita Police Department’s homicide unit.
Her guilty plea eliminates the need for a jury trial and moves the case directly to sentencing.
Under the expected sentence, Mock would serve life in prison and would not be eligible to seek parole until she has served at least 25 years.
