Death threats from a 14-year-old boy wielding a knife against his mother was an atypical assault, Cape Girardeau police said.

Police responded to a residence shortly after 7 p.m. Wednesday in the 900 block of Hackberry Street where an assault had been reported, Sgt. Carl Kinnison said.

The boy and his mother reportedly had a verbal argument that escalated into death threats, police said. After the argument, the mother told police that her son had left the residence, returning an hour later. When he returned, the argument continued and the boy seized a kitchen knife and started toward his mother. The woman said she locked herself in her bedroom, waited until he left and called police, Kinnison said.

"It's not unusual to respond to domestic violence that involves kids and their parents," he said. "But it's unusual when a death threat is involved."