Age: Adult – Page 26 – Disability Day of Mourning

Jeffrey Rak

No Photo Name: Jeffrey Alan Rak.
Died: February 14, 2016.
Age at death: 58.
Cause of death: Trauma in the setting of chronic illness.
Location: Burlington Township, Illinois, USA.
Disability: Alcoholism, epilepsy, COPD, heart disease, cirrhosis, chronic illness.

Details:
Jeffrey’s son hit him in the face; soon thereafter, he died.

Case status:
Daniel Rak (Son), acquitted of murder but convicted of aggravated domestic battery, sentenced to 4 years probation.

Source:
People v. Rak
Burlington Twp. man acquitted of murder gets probation for domestic battery
Attorney: Light ‘bop’ from son didn’t kill Burlington Township man
JEFFREY ALAN RAK DVM’s Memoriam on Daily Herald
Elburn man charged with father’s murder wants statements banned from trial
Prosecutors: Burlington murder suspect’s statements were voluntary
Man charged with killing his father in Burlington Township
Police: Signs of struggle at scene of Burlington Township death

Carolyn Taurino

No Photo Name: Carolyn Marie Taurino.
Died: February 10, 2016.
Age at death: 57.
Cause of death: Gunshot.
Location: Kershaw, South Carolina, USA.
Disability: Amputee, wheelchair user.

Details:
Carolyn’s son is accused of shooting her to death.

Case status:
Robert Allen Hypes (Son), charged with murder.

Source:
Carolyn Marie Taurino, age 57
Man charged in mom’s murder
Man charged with killing wheelchair-bound mother in Lancaster Co.
Man Charged with Murder of Mom Who Used Wheelchair
South Carolina man accused of shooting, killing his wheelchair-bound mother

Eunice Phiri

No Photo Name: Eunice Phiri.
Died: January 28, 2016.
Age at death: 53.
Cause of death: Blood loss.
Location: Kasungu National Park, Malawi.
Disability: Albinism.

Details:
Eunice’s brother lured her and her 8-year-old son, who also has albinism, out of her home and into a nearby national park. There, they killed her by cutting off her arms. Her 8-year-old son escaped and found his way back home.

Case status:
Msasauko Phiri (Brother), and two others, under investigation.

Source:
Woman with albinism killed in Malawi: no isolated incident
Albino woman murdered in Kasungu: Malawi Police hunt for killers
Malawi: Ritual murders of people with albinism must end

Samantha Kelly

Photo of Samantha Kelly. She has fair skin and bright red shoulder-length hair, and is wearing sunglasses. Name: Samantha Kelly.
Died: January 22, 2016.
Age at death: 39.
Cause of death: Traumatic injury.
Location: Kangaroo Flat, Bendigo, Victoria, Australia.
Disability: Intellectual disability.

Details:
Samantha and her four children lived with three housemates. The housemates eventually banned her from the main house and made her live in a rear bungalow, while they kept her children in the main house. Seeing the danger, Samantha asked a social worker to help her move out, but she never managed to escape.

Her housemates first tried drugging her. When that didn’t work, they beat her to death with a hammer and buried her body; then they claimed she had run off with a man and tried to take custody of her children.

The children, aged six, five, four, and 11 months, are safe and living with Samantha’s brother.

Case status:
Peter James Arthur (Housemate), pleaded guilty to murder, sentenced to 18-22 years.
Christine Lyons (Housemate), convicted of murder and attempted murder, sentenced to 23-30 years.
Ronald Lyons (Housemate), convicted of attempted murder and assisting an offender, sentenced to 9-12 1/2 years.

Source:
Loner jailed over murder plot to steal kids
Bendigo man jailed for murdering woman with hammer over custody plot
‘Manipulated’ murder accused deeply regrets hammer killing of housemate
Vic accused killer wanted kids, court told
Vic murder accused said victim walked off
Christine was infertile and “desperately” wanted kids. So she masterminded a sick plan.
How a mother got trapped in squalid web of a woman who wanted to be ‘Ma’
Crown asks for life sentence as family grieves Samantha Kelly
‘I will never forgive you’: Murder victim’s family address killer who tried to take kids
Former Ballarat woman still denies she killed mum to gain custody of her kids
Woman jailed for 30 years for murdering mother to take her kids
Infertile woman planned murder of disabled neighbour to take custody of her four kids

Holly Lozon

Name: Holly A. Lozon.
Died: January 13, 2016.
Age at death: 57.
Cause of death: Gunshot.
Location: Rainville Township, Michigan, USA.
Disability: Paraplegic, from surgery to remove bone spurs.

Details:
Holly was shot dead by her husband in a murder-suicide. He also killed their dog.

Holly was an animal-lover who especially enjoyed horseback riding.

Case status:
Gerald Lozon (Husband), deceased.

Source:
Tragedy beset Monroe Co. couple found dead in home
Obituary: Holly A. Lozon

Dwight Ridley

Name: Dwight Carrington Ridley Sr.
Died: January 11, 2016.
Age at death: 59.
Cause of death: Stabbed.
Location: Carson, Virginia, USA.
Disability: Unspecified; wheelchair user.

Details:
Dwight was stabbed to death by his nephew over a property dispute about the family farm.

He was an Army veteran who had three children and twelve grandchildren.

Case status:
Daryl Ridley (Nephew), charged with second-degree murder, found incompetent to stand trial.

Source:
Mental Health and Murder: Why man with ’emotional demons’ walked free
Obituary for Dwight Carrington Ridley, Sr. – PETERSBURG, VA
Why man accused of killing uncle over family farm won’t stand trial
Stabbing victim arrives at hospital, later deemed homicide suspect in Dinwiddie County
Arrest made in fatal Dinwiddie homicide, stabbing

Mark Fulgham

Photo of Mark Fulgham, an African-American man. He has a short mustache and beard, and is wearing a red baseball cap sideways. Name: Mark Fulgham.
Died: December 31, 2015.
Age at death: 36.
Cause of death: Sepsis.
Location: Concord, California, USA.
Disability: Paraplegic.

Details:
Mark’s wife neglected him until he was dying of malnutrition, dehydration, and infection from untreated bedsores. By the time she finally called for an ambulance, Mark was in such bad shape that he died after a day at the hospital.

Mark’s two children, a 19-year-old autistic boy and an 11-year-old, survived and were rescued from their uninhabitable apartment when Mark was taken to the hospital. The apartment was “red-tagged” by authorities, marking it as too dangerous to for anyone but professionals to enter.

Mark’s wife was charged with neglect of a dependent and child abuse in addition to murder, so it is likely that Mark’s children were also in danger. Mark’s death may have saved the lives of his children by bringing their situation to the attention of authorities.

Case status:
Dormanicia Lawson (Wife), charged with murder, neglect of a dependent, and child abuse; convicted of child abuse and neglect of a dependent; hung jury on murder charge; pleaded guilty to abuse, sentenced to 2-4 years in jail.

Source:
Wife faces charges after paraplegic husband’s ‘horrific’ death
‘Maggots Eating His Body’: Woman Charged in Death of Paraplegic Husband
Murder Charges For Concord Woman Accused Of Neglecting Paraplegic Husband
Wikipedia: Color-tagging
Concord husband neglect case: Jury appears split on murder charge
Concord: Jury hangs on murder charge for woman whose husband rotted to death
Paralysed husband is eaten alive by maggots and rots to death
California Woman Lets Paralyzed Husband Get Eaten Alive By Maggots

Paul Roddy

Photo of Paul Roddy, a man with fair skin and dark-brown hair. He is wearing a suit and tie. Name: Paul Roddy.
Died: December 31, 2015.
Age at death: 55.
Cause of death: Pneumonia.
Location: Manchester, England, UK.
Disability: Multiple sclerosis.

Details:
The caregiver that Paul was living with did not care for him. Instead, the man beat him up and starved him while pocketing the government money he claimed as a caregiver to a disabled person. Paul died from abuse and neglect, his body severely malnourished; he had multiple broken bones.

Paul was a retired engineer and the father of four children.

Case status:
Christopher McAllister (“Friend”; Non-family, non-professional caregiver), convicted of manslaughter, sentenced to 10 years.

Source:
Unemployed thug beat seven stone Multiple Sclerosis sufferer to death
MS-sufferer beaten to death in own home by thug carer who left him malnourished
Violent carer who killed vulnerable MS sufferer is jailed
Man with MS died after carer physically abused him for months

Kazuko Saito

No Photo Name: Kazuko Saito.
Died: December 13, 2015.
Age at death: 43.
Cause of death: Sharp-force trauma.
Location: Tokyo, Japan.
Disability: Developmental disability.

Details:
Kazuko’s sister killed her with a knife, then committed suicide.

Case status:
Fumiko Saito (Sister), deceased.

Source:
Murder-suicide suspected after discovery of sisters’ corpses
2 sisters dead in apparent murder-suicide

Bruce Rangitutia

Name: Bruce Tau Rangitutia.
Died: December 8, 2015.
Age at death: 55.
Cause of death: Head injury, pneumonia, starvation.
Location: Tokoroa, North Island, New Zealand.
Disability: Cerebral palsy, intellectual disability.

Details:
When Bruce’s mother died, he went to live with his brother and sister-in-law, who abused and neglected him. He shrank to 45.7 kilos and was hospitalized after entering a coma. After being stabilized, he was supposed to go to a rehabilitation facility; but his brother and sister-in-law refused this once they realized they would no longer receive money for caring for him; so he went back to live with them. They went right back to neglecting him, including denying him his regular medication. Confined to bed because of malnutrition and unexplained injuries from blunt-force trauma that were likely caused by abuse, he was unable to get food for himself, and his caregivers ignored his cries for food and water. He died of a combination of head injury, pneumonia, bedsores, and starvation.

Case status:
Jovander Raymond Terry (Adoptive brother), pleaded guilty to ill treatment of a vulnerable adult, sentenced to 6 years 7 months.
Annie Mathews (Sister-in-law), pleaded guilty to ill treatment of a vulnerable adult and failing to seek medical care, sentenced to 4 years 10 1/2 months.

Source:
A Tokoroa couple have been jailed after starving a man with cerebral palsy to death – 23-Sep-2019 – NZ Law and Order news
Vulnerable man who drank own urine spends last hours ‘constantly moaning and calling for food and water’
Vulnerable man starved by carers died weighing 6st after begging for food
Tokoroa couple admit starving man with cerebral palsy before he died
View Bruce RANGITUTIA’s Notice on nzherald.co.nz and share memories