Julian Wood stabbing suspect smiles in court as three-year-old’s father pleads with judge to ‘keep this monster behind bars’

Written by Melissa Koenig for Dailymail.Com

01:28 June 11, 2024, updated 10:32 June 11, 2024

An Ohio woman accused of stabbing three-year-old Julian Wood and his mother while grocery shopping was seen smiling in court Monday as she was charged with the boy’s murder.

Bionca Ellis, 32, was seen in Cuyahoga Common Pleas Court smiling and almost laughing as Judge Nancy Margaret announced she was facing charges of murder, aggravated murder, attempted murder, criminal assault, child endangerment, tampering evidence and misdemeanor theft.

She even turned directly to the camera and smiled before pleading not guilty to charges stemming from Wood’s murder at the Giant Eagle grocery store in North Olmstead in Cleveland on June 2.

But moments later, Wood’s grieving father, Jared Wood, pleaded with the judge to “do everything in his power to keep this monster behind bars,” and prosecutors announced they would seek the death penalty.

“On this day, a week ago, she took everything from us,” he said, apparently fighting back tears.

“Nothing will replace my son or anything that my wife and I, or even our other children, are going through.”

Police say Ellis first encountered Julian and his mother, Margot, 37, as they were leaving the Giant Eagle grocery store and then followed them to their car, brandishing a knife she allegedly stole from a nearby Volunteers of America thrift store .

According to Cleveland 19, she then allegedly stabbed the boy in the face and back as he sat in a shopping cart and then slashed his mother as she tried to pull the child to safety.

Police said Ellis was found just minutes later walking on a nearby side street, still holding a bloody knife.

Meanwhile, chaos reigned at the grocery store as paramedics desperately tried to resuscitate the boy and transported him and his mother to nearby St John Medical Center.

However, Julian’s wounds were too extensive and he did not survive the attack.

However, his mother is expected to make a full recovery.

It’s unclear why Ellis allegedly attacked the family as they left the grocery store.

Police said Ellis had no previous connection to the Wood family and called the attack a “completely random act of violence.”

There is no indication as to why she did this. She didn’t want to talk about anything, she became a lawyer,” said Detective Sergeant Matthew Beck.

He noted that she had no documented history of mental illness, but confessed that after her cruel and unsolved alleged crime, he wasn’t sure if it was true.

“We have some mental health concerns but nothing specific at this stage,” he said.

Ellis’ defense attorney also suggested in court Monday that she had “serious mental problems” as the suspect initially appeared via video feed with her head down and refused to answer any of the judge’s questions about whether she had read the indictment.

Judge Russo then ordered a lawyer from the public defender’s office to go to the Cuyahoga County Jail and read the indictment to Ellis.

About 45 minutes later, Ellis appeared in court and pleaded not guilty.

Russo then set Ellis’ bail at $5 million and ordered the suspect to return to court the following Monday

Meanwhile, Julian’s family raises money for his funeral, legal bills, and Margot’s recovery.

“Our family is overcome with sadness,” they wrote in a collective statement.

“We have no explanation for how or why this happened. It was a random act of violence. There was no prior argument, they didn’t know each other… it was a malicious, accidental act.

“She destroyed our family beyond description, she took something from us that we will never get back.”