Mother accused of trying to kill her 3 young children with carbon monoxide

KEIZER, Ore. (KPTV/Gray News) - An Oregon mother is facing charges after police say she called 911 to report she tried to kill herself and her three children by carbon monoxide poisoning.

Keizer Police say 32-year-old Chardonnay Marie Benavidez called 911 about 8:20 p.m. Saturday to report her children were falling in and out of consciousness after she allegedly tried to kill them and herself with carbon monoxide.

Officers responded to the home, where they found Benavidez in the living room with her 4-year-old son and her twin 2-year-old sons. Police also reportedly found a car in an attached garage with a makeshift apparatus running from the car’s exhaust pipe to the inside of the car.

Police say the Keizer Fire District also responded to the home Saturday night. Crews had to vent the garage before officers went inside due to the the amount of carbon monoxide that was still present.

Benavidez and all three children were taken to the hospital, where they were treated for carbon monoxide poisoning. Police say the children were medically cleared and released to their father Sunday.

Benavidez now faces three counts of first-degree attempted murder and three counts of first-degree attempted assault. She made her first court appearance Monday, where the judge denied bail due to the nature of the charges.

Prosecutors claimed in court that Benavidez planned to murder her children.

“The defendant told law enforcement that she had been planning this, researching it, for about a week. Prior to doing this, there were multiple options she was considering and landed on this option as one where they would all just fall asleep together,” one prosecutor said. “This case came to law enforcement when she called 911 to report that she had put herself and her three children in a vehicle with the exhaust on.”

Benavidez is due back in court next Wednesday.

According to court documents, Benavidez and her children’s father divorced in 2024. Divorce paperwork indicates that Benavidez had sole custody of the children.