An unsettling incident at a Poconos resort has emerged, involving a woman charged with the fatal stabbings of her husband and young son. Family members have revealed that the woman, from Towanda, had expressed reluctance about motherhood and harbored resentment towards her child.
EDITOR’S NOTE
Some readers may find details of the case included below disturbing.
According to a search warrant affidavit, Metallica Harrison, 27, was described as “dominant” and “controlling” by her husband Charles’ family. They reported to Pocono Township police that she had distanced them from Charles and their son over the past three years. Melissa Rivera, Charles’ sister, mentioned that Harrison felt their son was hindering her relationship with Charles.
The child, referred to as T.H. by police, has been identified as Tristan through a notice for an upcoming vigil in Towanda. Harrison faces homicide charges for the deaths of her husband and son in their hotel room at Great Wolf Lodge, with a preliminary hearing slated for November 3.
Currently held in Monroe County prison without bail, Harrison is undergoing treatment for self-inflicted injuries at St. Luke’s Hospital.
‘Too weak to stab my neck’
Harrison contacted county 911, expressing a desire to end her life. During the call, she apologized for her husband and son being “already gone in the bed in the living room,” according to an affidavit by detectives Earl Ackerman and Michael Scicutella.
“I’m too weak to stab my neck,” Harrison reportedly stated. She mentioned needing “help dying” and confirmed possessing knives, adding, “That’s what I’ve been using and it’s not working.”
She expressed a desire to join her deceased family, yet did not seek medical assistance for them, according to Scicutella’s affidavit. Police discovered her with minor injuries at the hotel room, where they also found her husband and son deceased on the floor.
According to FOX56, autopsy results confirmed that Tristan and Charles Harrison died from chest stab wounds, classified as homicides by the Monroe County Coroner’s Office.
The knives at home and the hotel
Investigators located several knives with teal handles in the hotel room, including a butcher knife and a steak knife. Similar knives were found at the Harrisons’ Towanda residence, which Great Wolf Lodge staff confirmed the hotel does not use.
The room also contained medication bottles and containers with suspected blood. Harrison reportedly told paramedics she had ingested medication to thin her blood, expressing frustration over its failure to work as expected.
At their Towanda home, police found financial documents, a laptop, a safe, and a Penelec electricity shutoff notice, which coincided with their stay at the resort. The Harrisons had arrived at Great Wolf Lodge on September 21, extending their reservation to October 13—the day after the incident. The cost of their stay, based on room rates, exceeded $3,700.
‘My happy family’
The search warrant revealed police were looking for any written or electronic documentation of Harrison’s thoughts, as similar cases often involve such records. In the ambulance, she lamented, “Every day I work so hard to be the best person, the best mother, the best wife,” and expressed sorrow that her envisioned “happy family” did not materialize as she had hoped since childhood.
