Ella Bennett was stabbed to death in her bed by her 13-year-old brother, Paris Lee Bennett, after he convinced their babysitter to leave the house.
Warning: This article contains graphic descriptions and/or images of violent, disturbing, or otherwise potentially distressing events.
Find a GraveElla Bennett lost her life when she was just four years old.
On the night of Feb. 4, 2007, four-year-old Ella Bennett was asleep in her bedroom in Abilene, Texas. It was Super Bowl Sunday, and her mother, Charity, was working a late shift at Buffalo Wild Wings. Ella and her teenage brother, Paris Lee Bennett, were home with a babysitter.
Around 10 p.m., Paris convinced the babysitter to leave the house, assuring her that he would be fine on his own until his mom got home. Once she was gone, he crept into Ella’s bedroom — and murdered her.
Paris initially pretended to be insane and claimed that he’d thought his little sister was a demon. However, he later pleaded guilty and admitted that he’d killed Ella because he wanted to hurt their mother.
He was sentenced to 40 years in prison with the possibility of parole after 20 years, meaning he could be released as early as 2027. Meanwhile, young Ella Bennett faced a horrific death and had her future ripped away from her — all at the hands of her brother.
The Fractured Home Of The Bennett Family
Ella Lee Bennett was born in Georgia on April 12, 2002. During her mother’s pregnancy, her older brother, Paris, was eight years old and reportedly deeply unhappy about welcoming a new sibling. According to their mother, Charity Lee Bennett, he withdrew from her almost completely and showed clear resentment.
But when Ella was born, his attitude seemed to change. Paris Lee Bennett became affectionate and attentive toward his baby sister. Family members later described the two as inseparable. Ella adored her older brother, and he seemingly enjoyed playing with her.
Ella was growing up as the youngest child in a family that had already experienced instability. Charity had endured a difficult upbringing — her own mother had once been accused of hiring a hitman to kill Charity’s father — and she struggled with addiction as a young adult.
In 2005, the family moved back to Texas to be closer to Charity’s mother, and old tensions quickly resurfaced. Charity started using cocaine again. This took a toll on Paris, who was entering the chaos of adolescence.
Charity Lee/FacebookCharity Lee holding baby Ella in May 2003.
“It was like a good six-month period I was back using,” Charity told the San Antonio Current in 2013. “I know it had an impact on him.”
Paris’ behavior began escalating. In one incident, after he was scolded for breaking one of Ella’s toys, Paris grabbed a kitchen knife and waved it at his mother and grandmother. They chased him through the house before finally calming him down and taking the knife away.
Charity later admitted Paris Lee Bennett to a psychiatric facility for evaluation. The doctors there noted that he was “obsessed about shooting and killing” and had “homicidal/suicidal ideation,” but he stayed for just a week before he was discharged without a long-term treatment plan, and his concerning behavior continued.
Not long after this incident, Charity, Paris, and Ella Bennett relocated to Abilene, Texas. On the surface, life appeared stable in their new home — but that all changed in February 2007.
The Vicious Murder Of Ella Bennett
On the evening of Feb. 4, 2007, Charity was scheduled to work the Super Bowl Sunday shift at Buffalo Wild Wings, so she hired a local college student to watch Paris and Ella Bennett. The night started normally: The kids ate Chinese food and watched a movie, and then Ella went to bed while Paris did his homework.
Then, around 10 p.m., Paris convinced the babysitter to leave since Ella was asleep, insisting that he could take care of himself until their mother got home. The young woman believed his lie — and it would cost four-year-old Ella Bennett her life.
Once he was alone, Paris watched explicit material online, including violent pornography. Afterwards, he entered Ella’s room as she slept. He sexually assaulted her and then stabbed her 17 times.
Investigation DiscoveryA childhood photo of Ella Bennett and her brother, Paris Bennett, shortly before Ella’s murder.
After killing Ella, Paris called a friend from school and told him what he’d done before dialing 911. The teen first informed the dispatcher that he’d experienced a hallucination that his sister was a demon covered in flames. When they instructed him to start performing CPR on Ella, Paris only pretended to give her chest compressions while counting out loud.
Once the police arrived and took Paris Lee Bennett into custody, they began doubting his initial claims. “At times during the interview process, Paris would appear as if he were attempting to cry,” one officer noted in his report, according to the Current, “however, he did not appear to be sincere with these attempts. At no time did he have tears come to his eyes.”
Meanwhile, officers headed to Buffalo Wild Wings to inform Charity about the tragedy. They arrived around 12:30 a.m., roughly an hour after Ella Bennett’s death.
As the New York Post reported in 2017, Charity recalled, “[The police] told me that my daughter had been hurt. And I was saying, ‘You need to take me to Ella now,’ and they were like, ‘You can’t go… she’s dead.'”
Charity Lee Bennett would lose both of her children that night.
Remembering Young Ella Bennett
In the aftermath of Ella Bennett’s death, Paris Lee Bennett was sentenced to 40 years in prison with the possibility of parole after 20 years, the maximum sentence allowed in juvenile court.
In 2019, Paris spoke with Piers Morgan about his decision to murder Ella. As reported by The Guardian at the time, Paris said, “For years, there was this hot, flaming ball of wrath in the pit of my stomach directed at my mother. And one of the reasons why I chose to kill my sister and not someone else is because I knew that, by doing that, I could hurt my mother in the worst possible way… I found a way to take away both her children in one fell swoop.”
Indeed, Paris had reportedly planned to kill Charity when she got home from work, too, but he changed his mind because he wanted her to suffer for the rest of her life — not just a few minutes.
Charity Lee/FacebookCharity Lee Bennett started a foundation in her daughter’s memory to help others who have experienced such a tragic loss.
So, with her son in prison and her daughter dead, Charity Lee Bennett had to find a way to move on. In 2011, she founded the ELLA Foundation, a non-profit organization for the victims of violent crimes. She spoke at events across the country and helped counsel people whose loved ones had either been murdered or were behind bars for murder.
As Charity told the Current, “Violent crime rips families apart. There are no sides. Just a whole lot of suffering for anybody connected to it.”
Charity also had another child in 2012, a son named Phoenix. After his birth, she made the painful decision to sever all ties with Paris.
As for Ella Bennett, she was robbed of her future. She never got the chance to grow up — or even start kindergarten. Yet those who loved her continue to remember her, ensuring that her short life is never forgotten.
After learning about the tragic murder of Ella Bennett, go inside the disturbing story of Erin Caffey, the teen who convinced her boyfriend to kill her entire family. Then, read about nine teenage serial killers and their horrendous crimes.
