December 18, 2025 What should have been a dream holiday trip for a California family turned into a bloody struggle for survival on the seventh floor of the world’s most famous department store.
The Attack: A Mother’s Worst Nightmare
It was 3:00 PM in the heart of the holiday rush. A 38-year-old mother, visiting from Los Angeles, stepped into the 7th-floor restroom to change her 10-month-old daughter. It is the most vulnerable position a parent can be in.
Suddenly, authorities say, 43-year-old Kerri Aherne lunged.
Aherne allegedly stabbed the mother in the back and slashed her arm. The force of the attack was so violent that the 10-month-old infant fell from the changing table to the hard floor. In a city where we often talk about "bystander apathy," this story took a different turn: the victim and the baby's father—both employees of the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department—fought back, subduing Aherne until security arrived.
The System Failure: Out of a Psych Ward and into Macy’s
As a journalist, you learn to look for the "why." In this case, the "why" points to a catastrophic failure of the mental health system.
According to prosecutors, Aherne had been discharged from a Manhattan psychiatric ward the very morning of the attack. She had been institutionalized for over a year. Within hours of her release, she reportedly told authorities that "voices in her head" gave her a chilling ultimatum: kill someone or be killed.
Perhaps the most disturbing detail? Aherne didn't bring a weapon with her. She reportedly purchased the knife inside Macy’s before heading to the bathroom to find a victim.
A History of Violence and Political Threats
This wasn't Aherne's first brush with the law or high-profile threats. Investigation into her past reveals a pattern of instability:
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2018: Arrested in Massachusetts for threatening to kill Senator Elizabeth Warren on Facebook.
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2024: Allegedly fled Massachusetts in an Uber while on temporary leave from a hospital, stating she "would rather be in prison" than a clinical setting.
