Woman Allegedly Kills Father With Ice Ax, Blames Election Results

SEATTLE, WA — A Seattle woman has been charged with first-degree murder after allegedly killing her father with an ice ax, claiming she was pushed over the edge by the results of the 2024 presidential election.

Corey Burke, 33, was arrested on Nov. 5 after police responded to reports of a disturbance at her southeast Seattle home. Neighbors had called authorities after witnessing Burke shatter the windows of her $800,000 house from the inside. Officers arrived to find her covered in blood, clapping and claiming she was “happy.”

Inside the home, police discovered the body of her father, 67-year-old Timothy Burke, in a lower-level bedroom. He had suffered multiple injuries consistent with being struck by an ice ax, which officers found upstairs, bloodied. According to court documents, Burke admitted to the killing, saying, “It needed to happen today.”

Burke reportedly told investigators she was overwhelmed by personal issues and the election results, believing former President Donald Trump would return to power. She admitted to attacking her father after a disagreement over turning off the lights in their home. Burke said she initially choked him, bit him when she struggled to maintain her grip, and then struck him multiple times with the ice ax. She reportedly sat beside his body until she was sure he was no longer breathing.

Afterward, Burke described smashing her home’s windows as “an act of liberation.” She also admitted to clapping when first responders arrived, saying she was “relieved.”

Court documents reveal disturbing details of Burke’s confession, including her belief that the killing was tied to her emotional “rebirth” and Election Day significance. Police detained her under the Involuntary Treatment Act before charging her with murder.

Burke, who previously worked as a training program manager at Jeff Bezos’ aerospace company "Blue Origin," had been in the public eye due to her marriage to writer Samantha Lee Allen, an editor of "Them" and author of "Real Queer America." 

Burke is being held in jail pending trial.