Woman Accused of Murdering Elderly Mother in Westside Stabbing

On Friday afternoon, the District Attorney’s office charged 41-year-old Santa Barbara resident Leinani McClintic with willful, premeditated murder in the first degree and use of a deadly weapon for allegedly stabbing 76-year-old Santa Barbara resident Hiilani Mikaitis to death. Mikaitis was McClintic’s mother, and they had moved to Santa Barbara from Hawai‘i. Mikaitis’s body was found with multiple stab wounds on Wednesday morning in a home at the 1500 block of Kowalski Avenue on Santa Barbara’s Westside. 

Bail for McClintic has been set at $2 million by Judge Von Deroian. The arraignment date was pushed from Friday to Monday, April 13.