Iris Tolentino, 46, also stabbed the dead boy's 17-year-old brother, who was holding a bathroom closed to keep her restrained until police arrived, Passaic County Prosecutor Camelia M. Valdes and Paterson Police Chief Ibrahim Baycora said in a joint announcement.
The younger boy, whom neighbors called David, was pronounced dead on arrival at St. Joseph’s Regional Medical Center.
The older brother was treated for a stab wound to his upper arm before being released.
A third brother, 15, was found in the home unharmed, Valdes and Baycora said.
Tolentino, meanwhile, was sent to the hospital for a psychological evaluation, they said.
A first appearance in Central Judicial Processing Court in Paterson was being scheduled for her on charges of first-degree murder, attempted murder, weapons offenses, aggravated assault on a police officer and child endangerment.
"An alarming act of domestic violence has turned into an unspeakable tragedy," Mayor Andre Sayegh said.
The mayor said he was trying to console the family and was "asking all of you to pray for the father and the two sons."
Officers were called to the third-floor apartment on North 6th Street shortly after 7 a.m.
They found the oldest boy holding the bathroom door closed, Valdes and Baycora said in a statement.
“Tolentino resisted arrest as the officers tried to take her into custody, with two officers suffering minor injuries,” the statement read.
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