Man who killed estranged wife at Wilmington gas station up for parole

WILMINGTON, NC (WWAY) — A New Hanover County man who stabbed his wife to death in 1987 is up for parole.

James Tidwell, 63, stabbed Mavies Tidwell at least 21 times in front of witnesses at a gas station on College Road.

On the morning of the murder, James Tidwell told a neighbor that he had caught his wife with another man the night before and was going to kill her. The couple had been separated for three months at the time.

A cashier at the gas station said Mavies Tidwell, who had her youngest child with her, drove up to the cashier’s booth and said she was being harassed by a man and that the police should be called.

James Tidwell pulled up, got into a confrontation with his wife, started beating her, and then stabbed her multiple times.

James Tidwell then went to church and told his pastor he had killed his wife. Tidwell remained at the church until law enforcement arrived.

In 1988, Tidwell was found guilty of first degree murder and sentenced to life in prison. The state’s current sentencing law eliminates parole for crimes committed on or after October 1, 1994, but Tidwell was found guilty under previous sentencing guidelines.