A Salem man is accused of murder for the stabbing of his elderly mother inside their home last week.

The man, Aaron J. White, 43, was arrested Monday for the murder of April White, 70, who was found dead Friday, according to statements from the Salem Police Department.

Marion County prosecutors are charging Aaron White with second-degree murder and unlawful use of a weapon, court records show.

The Salem Police Department originally announced White’s death Saturday in a statement saying it was investigating the suspicious death of a woman found in a northeast Salem home, along with an unrelated death near Wallace Marine Park.

Aaron White, identified by Salem police as April White’s son, was taken into custody five days after the killing, which court records show happened Wednesday, Jan. 28.

The death was reported by April White’s caregiver who arrived at the house, located in the 4600 block of Northeast Dark Forest Place, to find the woman dead on her living room floor, according to an officer’s statement in support of Aaron White’s arrest.

The statement provides a timeline of events leading up to the caretaker discovering April White’s body and details about her murder.

The caretaker, who worked Wednesdays and Fridays, visited the home on Jan. 28 at her usual work time to find the front door locked, which was unusual, the statement said.

After knocking without answer, she went around the side of the house, she saw a figure she believed was Aaron White standing inside the home, according to the statement. She told officers she was “very concerned” for April White, contacted the company she works for and was dismissed from working that day.

On Friday, Jan. 30, April White’s caretaker returned to the house and found the woman’s body.

The next day, an autopsy confirmed that April White was killed with a stab wound to her neck, and had sustained other stab wounds to her abdomen.

Evidence on the scene led investigators to believe blood had been cleaned up and her body had been staged.

Her body was found with a clean knife in one hand and unidentified “articles” placed on top of her body, the officer’s statement said. A DVD player was on the floor surrounded by discarded DVDs, which the caretaker told officers she did not remember being there on her last visit.

Aaron White was the only other person living with his mother at the time after he was released from jail in August 2025, he told officers. 

During those months, his mother became difficult to care for and “asked him to do things which he agreed he grew tired of,” the officer’s statement said.

Officers spoke with the victim’s brother who, while living with April White several years ago, watched her son “physically attack” her several times, the statement said. Salem police know of multiple police contacts with the family regarding Aaron White attacking his mother, according to the officer’s statement.

Aaron White denied ever assaulting his mother to officers.

He has a criminal history that includes methamphetamine possession, menacing, low-level assault and robbery.

Aaron White was most recently charged in Marion County Circuit Court with first-degree criminal mischief in February 2025. At one point, he was found unfit to proceed in the case due to a mental illness and was ordered in March to receive treatment at the Oregon State Hospital.

“He was irritable, grandiose, rambling, hostile and largely uncooperative with the interview process,” Dr. Andrew Stover, a local psychologist, wrote last year of Aaron White. Stover’s findings were quoted in a court order finding Aaron White unable to assist in his own defense.

“He could not be educated about his legal situation. He wants to fire his attorney and represent himself, yet cannot accurately explain what his charges are, appreciate the evidence against him and risk of sentencing if he goes to trial, or give a coherent description of basic processes that happen during a trial. He was adamant he will not take medications,” Stover wrote. 

He wrote he believes Aaron White has a “bipolar illness related to an underlying medical condition and is personality disordered.”

Prosecutors moved to dismiss the charges in June after finding Aaron White had “no substantial probability” of regaining his fitness to proceed.

Aaron White is next scheduled to appear in court Friday, Feb. 6.

Contact reporter Madeleine Moore: [email protected].

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