Woman Charged After Fatal Stabbing Outside Family Dollar In Lake Station
LAKE STATION — A Lake Station woman has been charged in connection with the fatal stabbing of 21-year-old Bernard Taylor Jr., who was found dead in a Family Dollar parking lot early Sunday morning, according to a probable cause affidavit filed by the Lake Station Police Department.
Detectives say the incident unfolded just before 2 a.m. on October 19, 2025, outside the Family Dollar store located at 2626 Central Avenue. Officers were dispatched to a report of an unconscious male and arrived to find Serenity Moesha Williams Worthey, 20, kneeling over Taylor with her hands on his chest. A pink child’s blanket lay across the victim, who had suffered a wound to the upper chest. Despite life-saving efforts, Taylor was pronounced dead at the scene by responding medics.
Detectives observed two vehicles parked near the store entrance, a black 2006 Jeep Grand Cherokee registered to Taylor and a black 2009 Hyundai Elantra driven by Worthey. The Jeep’s passenger door and the Hyundai’s driver door were open. A one-year-old child shared by the couple was found in a car seat in the back of Worthey’s car. Another woman was in the passenger seat of Taylor’s Jeep when the incident occurred.
Officers detained both women for questioning. A witness living nearby told investigators she saw two cars parked in the lot, one behind the other. The witness saw a man exit one vehicle, approach the second, and appear to laugh and talk before collapsing moments later as a woman began screaming for help.
According to the affidavit, Worthey told investigators that she and Taylor shared a “tumultuous” relationship marked by previous domestic disputes. She said she had been celebrating her birthday with Taylor earlier that evening at his father’s residence in Portage, where both had been drinking. The two reportedly argued later in the night.
Worthey told police she followed Taylor’s Jeep through multiple Lake Station neighborhoods until he pulled into the parking lot between Mike’s Gas and Family Dollar. She claimed that Taylor approached her car, and the two began “tussling” near the driver’s side door as he tried to push her back inside the vehicle. During the altercation, Worthey said Taylor suddenly collapsed and she called 911 for help.
Initially, Worthey denied causing any injuries. However, after investigators obtained a search warrant and located a silver-handled kitchen knife with apparent blood inside her vehicle, Worthey admitted to stabbing Taylor during the struggle. She told detectives it was an accident and that she “didn’t actually think [she] did it” until she saw blood.
Police records show two prior domestic calls involving the couple earlier this year. In April 2025, Hobart Police documented a dispute in which Taylor claimed Worthey pepper-sprayed him and struck him with a vehicle. No charges were filed. A separate report from May 2025 in Gary detailed another argument where both declined further police involvement.
A search of Worthey’s vehicle revealed the knife tested positive for blood. Worthey later provided DNA samples and consented to a phone search but declined to allow police to search her car initially.
According to court records, Worthey now faces a charge of Murder, Aggravated Battery – posing a substantial risk of death, Domestic Battery by Means of a Deadly Weapon, Domestic Battery Resulting in Serious Bodily Injury, and Domestic Battery committed in the presence of a child less than 16 years old.
The Lake Station Police Department was assisted by the Lake County Prosecutor’s Homicide Task Force.
All suspects are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.
