Husband Charged After Wife Dies Days After Alleged Strangling

By Taylor Bennett. Oct 8, 2026

An Assault Case Changed After Sandra Porter Died

A North Carolina man is facing a second-degree murder charge after his wife died more than a week after police say he strangled her at their Huntersville home. Cody Franklin Porter Jr., 66, had initially been arrested on assault-related charges after officers found Sandra Porter unresponsive on Sept. 22.

Police and paramedics were called to the home on McGinnis Lane at about 6:37 p.m. Sandra Porter was taken to a hospital for treatment, where she remained until her death on Oct. 1.

Investigators allege that her husband strangled her until she lost consciousness. He was initially charged with assault by strangulation, assault with a deadly weapon with intent to kill and a misdemeanor domestic violence offense.

After Sandra died, detectives reviewed the original incident along with medical and investigative findings. Police then upgraded the case, and Porter was charged with second-degree murder on Oct. 2.

The Murder Charge Followed New Medical Findings

Huntersville police said the upgraded charge reflected the circumstances of the original assault, Sandra Porter’s death and additional medical and investigative information. Authorities have not publicly described what they believe led to the alleged assault.

The case is now focused on whether prosecutors can connect the alleged strangulation to Sandra’s death and prove the second-degree murder charge. Porter has not been convicted, and the publicly available reports did not include a plea or a detailed defense response.

WBTV and WSOC both reported that the couple were at their home when the incident occurred. The initial emergency response centered on Sandra’s condition rather than a homicide investigation because she was still alive when officers arrived.

That changed after more than a week in the hospital. Her death shifted the legal posture from an assault case to a murder case, one of the clearest examples of how a victim’s medical outcome can change the charges after an arrest has already been made.

Police have not released further details because the investigation and court proceedings are ongoing. There has been no public account of an argument, a prior dispute or another event immediately preceding the alleged assault.

A Domestic Call Became a Homicide Prosecution

The known timeline is relatively compact. Officers arrived on Sept. 22 and found Sandra unresponsive. She was hospitalized. Porter was arrested on assault-related accusations. Sandra died on Oct. 1, and detectives filed the murder charge the following day.

Sandra was identified by local outlets as 65 or 66 in different reports; because authorities have not resolved that discrepancy publicly, her age is not central to the article. What is clear is that she spent more than a week receiving hospital care before her death.

Authorities have asked anyone with information to contact Huntersville detectives. The department has also said it does not plan to release additional details while the criminal case is pending.

For Sandra’s family, the period between the emergency call and the murder charge included more than a week in which she remained alive in the hospital. The prosecution now begins after that outcome changed, with her husband accused of causing the injuries that police say led to her death.

The upgraded charge also means the evidence gathered during the first response will be examined alongside hospital records and later medical findings. Police have specifically tied the new count to both the original circumstances and information developed after Sandra was admitted. That sequence will be central as the case moves from the initial domestic-violence allegations into a homicide prosecution.

Because authorities have released little about the period before officers arrived, the public record does not support conclusions about motive or intent beyond the charges themselves. The next meaningful facts are expected to come through court filings, hearings, or additional statements from investigators rather than speculation about what happened inside the home.

References: Huntersville man charged with murder after wife dies from strangulation, police say | Huntersville man faces murder charge after wife dies