UPMC physician fatally stabbed; daughter charged with homicide

Allegheny County Police have charged a 27-year-old woman with the homicide of her father, Anthony Nicassio, MD, a 69-year-old internist and primary care physician at Greater Pittsburgh Medical Associates-UPMC, according to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.

Police and paramedics responded to an emergency call at the Nicassio home around 3:30 a.m. Saturday. Dr. Nicassio's wife told police the couple had been trying to persuade their daughter, Christina Nicassio, to let them take her to Forbes Regional Hospital in Monroeville, Pa. Ms. Nicassio and her fiancé had recently broken up, and she was speaking nonsensically, according to a Pittsburgh Tribune-Review report.

When her parents tried to get her into their vehicle. Ms. Nicassio grabbed a knife and stabbed Dr. Nicassio twice in the chest when he attempted to take the knife away from her, according to the affidavit. Dr. Nicassio died in his home from the wounds.

Police took Ms. Nicassio into custody "without incident," where she consented to an interview. She allegedly told police: "I don't know why [I killed him], I thought he had to die." Ms. Nicassio continued, reportedly referencing the 2001 film "The Mummy Returns" in which she said "someone who can't love someone else … stab[s] their father," according to the report.

Around 2:45 p.m., Saturday, police said Ms. Nicassio suffered a small laceration to the front of her head, telling police she "did it to herself because she was upset about what she had done," according to the report. Officials took her to Pittsburgh-based Allegheny General Hospital in stable condition.

Ms. Nicassio's preliminary hearing is scheduled for May 17.

"We are deeply saddened by the death of Dr. Nicassio, who was a dedicated and skilled physician and who devoted his life to compassionate care of his patients," UPMC officials said in a statement to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.

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