In November, LaToya Crabbe was charged with murdering her soon-to-be ex-husband. Ms. Crabb claimed self-defense after her husband threatened to hurt her and her family.
AmmoLand News reported on the case shortly after the Commonwealth’s Attorney filed murder charges. Ms. Crabbe has served her country with dignity. She is highly educated and is a lieutenant commander in the United States Public Health Service (PHS) where she serves as a pharmacologist helping underserved areas such as Indian Reservations. PHS is one of the branches of the uniform services that do not get the light it deserves. They go into harm’s way as doctors, nurses, and pharmacists. They deploy like every other branch. Ms. Crabbe was no exception to this rule.
Ms. Crabbe married a man named Curtis Crabbe, who has a criminal record of armed robbery and other crimes. Soon after they married, Mr. Crabbe allegedly became abusive. The alleged abuse led Ms. Crabbe to ask for a divorce. After the split up, Ms. Crabbe was afraid her husband would do something to hurt her or her family. To protect herself and her children, she purchased a gun. A gun that just might have saved her life.
Shortly after the breakup, Mr. Crabbe started sending text messages to Ms. Crabbe, threatening to hurt her family and burn down her mother’s home. Ms. Crabbe and her children lived with LaToya’s mother. Mr. Crabbe did not reside at the residence but threatened to show up.
“Stop f—— with me and answer my call or I’m going to go to the house and punch your mother in the face,” Mr. Crabbe texted Ms. Crabbe two days before showing up unannounced. “Toya, I’m not playing around. A will hurt everyone in that house then set it on fire. Answer my mother—— call right now or I’m headed to the crib.”
A few nights later, Mr. Crabbe showed up unannounced at Ms. Crabbe’s mother’s house, where the woman had been staying with her kids. Mr. Crabbe did not have permission to come to the home. The two would get into an argument. Ms. Crabbe claimed that Mr Crabbe became upset. She claimed that she was afraid for her life. Mr. Crabbe became more upset, and Ms. Crabbe claimed she became frantic because she believed that Mr. Crabbe was going to hurt not only her but her family. She drew her gun and shot her husband four times, killing him. Her mother, who was in the house, called the police.
Ms. Crabbe told the police that she killed Mr. Crabbe in self-defense, but Manassas, Virginia Prosecutor D. Burke Walker, had other ideas and charged the woman with second-degree murder. The prosecutor claims that there was no evidence of a struggle. Mr. Walker also says he believes she reloaded her handgun, a claim that the defense vehemently denies. She had a handgun that was 7+1. Police found four rounds still in the magazine, and since Curtis was shot four times, they claimed that she must have reloaded a single round.
Ms. Crabbe was arrested and held without bond through the holidays. She finally received a bond on February 27. She was offered a plea deal but turned it down. The trial was scheduled to start last Monday, but prosecutors dropped the original charges and refiled first-degree murder charges. Because of the superseding indictment, the clock restarts. The trial is now delayed until November.
Ms. Crabbe is free on a $10,000 bond and must wear an ankle monitor. Ms. Crabbe’s mother has set up a GiveSendGo for the woman’s legal defense fund.
About John Crump
Mr. Crump is an NRA instructor and a constitutional activist. John has written about firearms, interviewed people from all walks of life, and on the Constitution. John lives in Northern Virginia with his wife and sons, follow him on X at @crumpyss, or at www.crumpy.com.
Well, she did some things right and other things wrong. Wrong; She married a dirt bag. There is no mention of an order of protection. When someone threaten your life, your kids lives, your mom’s life and her house AND YOU HAVE WRITTEN PROOF OF IT, get your but down to the police station and file a complaint. That way, should you have to shoot in defense, the cops, who should keep watch for a few days anyway, have a record of trouble. I know that most people don’t like dealing with the cops but in this case lives there… Read more »
Never trust a pretentious ass who starts their name with an initial. I wonder how long Mr. Douche Burke Walker would have tolerated such threats, and what his reaction would be to an assault in his own home? Perhaps call 911 and let the police recover his body?
Sounds to me the prosecutor should be the one locked up. There needs to be another person to confirm if the victim (the mother) should be prosecuted or not, in this case, not.
So much for the constitutional right to a speedy trial…
The prosecutor thinks she reloaded…it’s a 7+1 firearm, that’s eight rounds. She fired four and there were four rounds still in the firearm; that’s still eight. Every defensive firearm I carry has the +1 in the chamber, why wouldn’t that be assumed to be common practice, vs a reload? The prosecutor has an axe to grind or grander aspirations. If you aren’t invited on my property, you are already behind the eightball as I’m now on alert. If you have threatened previously me, even more so, and my first thought is that this isn’t a social call; you are there… Read more »
Doesn’t say whether she filed for a restraining order or not. If someone is threatening you get a restraining order. The paper won’t stop them, but jury will see it as proof you were trying to avoid confrontation and tried to get police to deescalate. Better yet DA may recognize that jury will acquit and not charge you.
Legal defense is crazy expensive – anything you can do to reduce that should be done. Including prepaid legal or whatever plan will help cover costs.
Right now this Isn’t out of step here in Virginia. The socialists have passed a slew of Anti-Gun bills on the table in Richmond. I’m gonna take a wild gander and say the dropping and refiling of the charges are in step and timely with what the socialist majority in the House and the Senate just came out with. Manassas. Everyone know what history is in Manassas, VA.? This nonsense is on par with the Courts in Manassas. Fellow Americans, the Court System from Fed to State to Local need an overall Review. Is the Court system from top to… Read more »
Just another lousy stinkin lawyer trying to make a name for himself.
Even Jesus Christ didn’t have anything good to say about lawyers!