Peoria woman sentenced to prison in stabbing death of boyfriend

Heaven Kruzan, 23, took a plea deal in May to avoid a more serious charge of first-degree murder handed down after allegedly stabbing Lamario Phillips, 34, in a home in the 1900 block of South Stanley Street in March 2023.

According to charging documents from the Peoria County Clerk's Office, Kruzan, “without legal justification” committed his actions knowing it could kill or cause serious bodily injury to Phillips, but believed she would be justified because circumstances. However, this belief was not considered reasonable.

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When he was initially charged, prosecutors with the Peoria County District Attorney's Office said Kruzan stabbed Phillips near a bed in the home after an argument, inflicting a single wound on his chest. He was taken to a local hospital, where he died a short time later.