Metallica Rose Harrison, 27, of Towanda, Pennsylvania, has been charged with two counts of criminal homicide after police say she stabbed her husband, Charles “Chaz” Harrison, and their 3-year-old son to death in a guest room at the Great Wolf Lodge indoor waterpark resort in Pocono Township, Monroe County, on Monday.
Harrison, who also cut and stabbed herself during the incident, remains hospitalized. Monroe County District Attorney Mike Mancuso said at a news conference Tuesday that investigators are still working to determine a motive. “That’s one of the most perplexing questions,” Mancuso said. “But it’s a developing situation.”
How Police Were Called
According to an arrest affidavit written by Pocono Township Police Sgt. Earl Ackerman, officers were dispatched to the resort at 3:13 p.m. Monday after Harrison called 911 herself, reporting that she was suicidal.
On the recording, police say Harrison told the dispatcher she “needed help dying” and that she was unable to find the vein in her neck, adding, “I’m too weak to stab my neck.” She told the dispatcher she had knives in the room.
When asked if she was alone, Harrison allegedly responded: “My husband and son are already gone in the bed in the living room … They’re already gone, I’m sorry.” According to the affidavit, at no point during the call did she request help for her husband or son.
What Officers Found
Officers met Harrison at the doorway of the room and observed bleeding cuts on her left wrist and superficial puncture wounds on her neck. She told them she wanted to be with her husband and son.
Inside, officers found Charles Harrison’s body on a mattress on the floor; he had suffered multiple stab wounds to the chest. Their son’s body was found on a separate mattress, with what the affidavit describes as a single stab wound to the chest. The child is identified in court records only by his initials.
Investigators later found a large butcher knife on the bathroom floor and a smaller knife on the bathroom sink, both with teal handles — items that resort staff confirmed were not supplied by the lodge. Several bottles of unspecified medication were also found in the room, along with suspected blood in a plastic container and a bathroom trash can. Police have seized between 80 and 90 pieces of evidence from the scene.
Surveillance footage reviewed by investigators showed the family last entering their room together at 6:53 p.m. on Sunday, October 11. Footage captured Harrison leaving briefly around 8:12 p.m. to use a microwave in the vending area, and both parents leaving for the arcade at 10:43 p.m., returning around 11:22 p.m. That was the last time the door was seen opening before police were called the following afternoon.
At the Hospital
Harrison was taken by ambulance to St. Luke’s Hospital – Monroe Campus in Stroudsburg, accompanied by a township police officer. Police say she repeatedly stated she “was not supposed to be here” and that she had “messed up.” She also allegedly asked EMS personnel how deep her wrist vein was “so that she knew for next time.”
According to the affidavit, Harrison said in the ambulance: “Every day I work so hard to be the best person, the best mother, the best wife. It wasn’t supposed to end like this.”
When Ackerman and Detective Michael Scicutella later went to the hospital, read her Miranda rights, and asked to speak with her, Harrison told them she was “suicidal, not stupid,” and declined to answer questions. Police executed a search warrant on her body, photographing her and collecting a DNA sample; aside from her wrist and neck injuries, no other wounds, bruising or defensive injuries were noted.
Police also obtained search warrants for the hotel room and for Charles Harrison’s vehicle. Autopsies for both victims are scheduled for later this week, Monroe County Coroner Thomas Yanac said.
The Lodge’s Response
Great Wolf Lodge security told police the family had checked in on September 21, with their reservation extended on October 5 through a checkout date of October 13.
The resort relocated nearby guests and cordoned off a section near the room while police completed their investigation, according to lodge spokesperson Jason Lasecki, but has since resumed normal operations.
“We are deeply saddened and heartbroken by a tragic domestic incident that occurred yesterday in a guest room at our resort in the Pocono Mountains,” the lodge said in a statement. “It was an isolated family incident, and we’re cooperating fully with local law enforcement as they conduct their investigation. Our thoughts are with the family and loved ones of those affected.”
Lasecki added that law enforcement “assessed the situation at the resort, determined it was an isolated family incident and quickly verified there was no ongoing security concern.”
What’s Next
Harrison faces two counts of criminal homicide. The investigation remains ongoing, and the DA’s office has not yet disclosed a possible motive.
