Remembering the Disabled Murdered by Caregivers
Name: Dustin Hicks.
Died: November 5, 2015.
Age at death: 14.
Cause of death: Gunshot.
Location: Dawsonville, Georgia, USA.
Disability: Autism, Crohn’s disease.
Details:
Dustin was shot by his mother in a murder-suicide.
Case status:
Nina Hicks (Mother), deceased.
Source:
Autism memorial: Dustin Hicks
Was the murder of Dustin Hicks committed by a biomed mom?
Woman, son dead in apparent Dawson Co. murder-suicide
Dawsonville mother shoots disabled son, self in possible mercy killing
Name: Sally Nelson.
Died: November 1, 2015.
Age at death: 63.
Cause of death: Head injury.
Location: Connellsville, Pennsylvania, USA.
Disability: Elderly disabled.
Details:
Sally died of head injuries from a beating after suffering malnutrition and several other broken bones. Her daughter and her daughter’s boyfriend were charged with the crime.
Case status:
Peter Shoemaker Jr. (Daughter’s boyfriend), charged with criminal homicide, conspiracy, aggravated and simple assault and reckless endangerment. Currently incarcerated as of 11/1/2022, sentence unknown.
Lisa Nelson (Daughter), pleaded guilty to involuntary manslaughter, sentenced to 3-6 years.
Source:
Defense seeks dismissal, suppression in 2015 death trial
Woman pleads in mother’s death; ex-boyfriend awaits trial
‘You killed my grandma’: Statement evidence against couple charged in ‘severe elder abuse’ death
Couple charged in death of mother; elder abuse alleged
Name: Lalia Delinar Hawthorne.
Died: October 27, 2015.
Age at death: 4.
Cause of death: Abdominal trauma.
Location: Savannah, Georgia, USA.
Disability: Down syndrome.
Details:
Lalia was beaten to death by her mother’s boyfriend.
Case status:
James Emmanuel Robinson (Mother’s boyfriend), convicted of felony murder, two counts of aggravated assault and three counts of cruelty to children in the first degree, sentenced to life without parole.
Source:
Supreme Court upholds murder conviction against man who killed 4-year-old
Lalia Hawthorne – Obituary
Savannah man sentenced to life without parole in 2015 murder of four year old girl
Name: Alfonso Rafael Jr.
Died: October 26, 2015.
Age at death: 56.
Cause of death: Gunshot.
Location: Westchester, Florida, USA.
Disability: Unspecified; wheelchair user.
Details:
Alfonso Jr. was shot by his father in a murder-suicide.
Case status:
Alfonso Rafael (Father), deceased.
Source:
Father and Son Found Shot to Death in Westchester: Police
Name: Corey Carpenter.
Died: October 23, 2015.
Age at death: 27.
Cause of death: Starvation.
Location: Blanca, Colorado, USA.
Disability: Fragile X, autism.
Details:
When his father died, Corey inherited his property. His mother sought conservatorship of him and refused all assistance with caring for him.
Corey starved to death when his mother stopped giving him food and water and refused to get him medical help. He weighed only 57 pounds.
Case status:
Carol Carpenter (Mother), convicted of negligence causing death, sentenced to 8 years probation.
Source:
Autism Memorial: Corey Carpenter
Colo. mom arrested after disabled son, 27, dies of malnourishment
Blanca mother resisted getting medical help for son
October trial set in mom charged in son’s death
Starvation death case heads to trial
Mom gets probation in son’s death
Name: Ezekial Castro.
Died: October 23, 2015.
Age at death: 4.
Cause of death: Hypernatremia (salt overdose).
Location: Tucson, Arizona, USA.
Disability: Tetralogy of Fallot (congenital heart defect).
Details:
Ezekial’s mother poisoned him with salt, making him so sick he needed to be hospitalized. Then while he was in the hospital for that, she fed him more salt, and Ezekial died.
Case status:
Ashley Castro (mother), pleaded guilty to second-degree murder, sentenced to 25 years in prison.
Source:
Tucson woman sentenced for poisoning her child
Court documents reveal details in 4-year-old boy’s death
Name: Janiya Thomas.
Died: Last seen June 9, 2014; body found October 18, 2015.
Age at death: 11.
Cause of death: Homicide.
Location: Bradenton, Florida, USA.
Disability: Unnamed bowel/digestive condition, causing incontinence.
Details:
Janiya was last seen by child protective services about a month before her mother, citing Janiya’s medical condition, a digestive problem which had killed Janiya’s father, announced to the state that she had decided to home-school Janiya. In reality, she abused Janiya, locking her in the bathroom for days at a time to punish her.
More than a year later, when her mother publicly beat Janiya’s older brother and child protective services came for Janiya’s four siblings, Janiya was not with them and the children reported that they had not seen Janiya in a long time. Several days later, Janiya’s body was found in a freezer, and her mother was arrested. An autopsy found that Janiya had been starved, suffocated, or drowned.
Janiya was a shy girl who liked hot tortilla chips and baby dolls.
Case status:
Keishanna Thomas (Mother), pleaded no contest to second-degree murder, sentenced to 65 years.
Source:
Mother who hid daughter’s body in freezer gets 65 years
Investigators hope to learn more about presumed death of missing Bradenton girl Janiya Thomas
Autopsy: Janiya Thomas starved, suffocated or drowned
Mother of 11-Year-Old Found Dead in Padlocked Freezer Indicted for Murder; Court Papers Reveal Allegations of Horrific Abuse
Name: James Ray Wilkerson.
Died: October 18, 2015.
Age at death: 67.
Cause of death: Stabbed.
Location: The Dalles, Oregon, USA.
Disability: Dementia; paraplegic.
Details:
James’s wife went to the veterans’ home where he lived, and stabbed him to death.
James served more than 20 years in the US Navy and was a Vietnam veteran.
Case status:
Esther Wilkerson (Wife), charged with murder, domestic violence, and unlawful use of a weapon; pleaded guilty to manslaughter, sentenced to 10 years.
Source:
Murder at veterans’ home
Find a Grave: James Ray Wilkerson
Fatal stabbing in TD leads to arrest
Woman who killed disabled husband at veterans’ home gets 10 years in prison
Name: Mary Fields.
Died: October 15, 2015.
Age at death: 67.
Cause of death: Stroke.
Location: Youngstown, Ohio, USA.
Disability: Mental illness.
Details:
Mary was neglected by her sister; she died of a stroke, brought on by malnutrition and dehydration.
Case status:
Barb Copeland (Sister), pleaded guilty to failing to provide care for an impaired person. Plea agreement involved seeking mental health treatment.
Source:
Former YPD officer pleads guilty to charges related to sister’s death
Former YPD officer indicted for death of sister
Mary Fields – The Warren Record: Obituaries
Former YPD officer pleads guilty to neglecting disabled sister
Name: Emily Jean Kaminski.
Died: October 14, 2015.
Age at death: 16.
Cause of death: Prescription drug overdose.
Location: La Mesa, California, USA.
Disability: Multiple disabilities, including blindness.
Details:
Emily’s grandmother gave her a fatal overdose of prescription drugs, then killed herself.
Case status:
Marshelle Marie Newby (Grandmother), deceased.
Source:
Police: California Grandmother Gave Disabled Teen Fatal Overdose in Murder-Suicide