Age: Child – Disability Day of Mourning

Elliot Perez

No Photo Name: Elliot Perez.
Died: October 19, 2025.
Age at death: 6.
Cause of death: Strangled.
Location: Land O’ Lakes, Florida, USA.
Disability: Autism.

Details:
Police officers who interviewed Elliot’s mother after his death say that she told them that when Elliot banged his head against the floor, she tried to restrain him; when the child bit and hit her trying to get away, she allegedly strangled him to death.

Case Status:
Justine Mroz (Mother) is charged with second-degree murder.

Sources:
Autism Memorial: Elliot Perez
Pasco County mother held without bond, accused of killing 6-year-old son
School teacher calls 911 to report she just killed her child, Florida cops say
Police: Florida woman ‘snapped’ before strangling death of 6-year-old autistic son

Jaxson Rantala

Name: Jaxson Jay “JJ” Rantala.
Died: October 16, 2025.
Age at death: 4.
Cause of death: Stabbed.
Location: Seattle, Washington, USA.
Disability: Autism.

Details:
JJ’s mother allegedly stabbed him to death. Medical examiners testified that he would have taken about an hour to die from multiple knife wounds.

Case Status:
Joelene Rodriguez (Mother) is charged with murder.

Sources:
Seattle mother charged with murder in killing of autistic 4-year-old son
Mother who admitted killing autistic 4-year-old son held on $5 million bail
Mother suspected of killing son in Seattle’s Roosevelt neighborhood, police say
Neighbors hold vigil for 4-year-old allegedly murdered by mother
Washington woman stabbed 4-year-old son in bathtub, police say
Seattle mom confesses to ‘sacrificing’ 4-year-old autistic son ‘to protect her family’: police
Autism Parents Support Group
Court docs detail injuries inflicted on non-verbal child, allegedly by his mom, before death

Renesmay Eutsey

Name: Renesmay Eutsey.
Died: September 4, 2025.
Age at death: 9.
Cause of death: Unknown; possibly untreated burn or blunt trauma.
Location: Dunbar, Pennsylvania, USA.
Disability: Intellectual disability.

Details:
When Renesmay went missing, she was initially assumed to have left her home and become lost by accident; but when her body was found floating in a river, police arrested her adoptive mother and stepmother.

Other children in the home, one of which was hospitalized for signs of abuse and neglect, told police that they had seen their parents kicking Renesmay, and that they had been told Renesmay was going to be taken to “a river far away”. Police also say that Renesmay’s mother told them that she had been burned in the bathtub, and that the burn went untreated and she died from the infection.

Case Status:
Kourtney Eutsey (Adoptive mother) is charged with homicide, child endangerment, abuse of a corpse, evidence tampering, concealing the death of a child and two counts of aggravated assault.
Sarah Shipley (Stepmother) is charged with criminal homicide and conspiracy to commit criminal homicide.

Sources:
Missing girl with intellectual disability from Fayette County found dead
Adoptive mother charged with homicide after missing Dunbar girl found dead in Yough River
DA: Sibling hospitalized, more charges anticipated against caregivers of Renesmay Eutsey
Death of 9-year-old Fayette County girl leaves questions over reporting of child abuse allegations

Bryan Vasquez

Name: Bryan Vasquez.
Died: August 26, 2025.
Age at death: 12.
Cause of death: Blunt force trauma, drowning.
Location: New Orleans, Louisiana, USA.
Disability: Traumatic brain injury; mother claimed autism.

Details:
After Bryan went missing, his body was found in a canal, his death the result of drowning and injuries from an alligator attack. Initially treated as an accidental death, Bryan’s death made authorities suspicious when they looked into his mother’s criminal history: After Bryan, as an infant, had suffered a fractured skull and broken legs, she pleaded guilty to cruelty to juveniles by negligence or neglect.

Police say that even though Bryan had a history of leaving home and getting lost, Bryan’s mother made no attempt to secure the window he climbed out through after the first time he climbed out of it, nor the second time; it was the third time he left the house that he became lost and died.

Case Status:
Hilda Vasquez (Mother) is charged with negligent homicide and second-degree cruelty to juveniles.

Sources:
Mother of 12-Year-Old New Orleans Boy Killed By Alligator was Previously Convicted for Abusing Him
Autism Memorial: Bryan Vasquez
Court records reveal new details about New Orleans mom’s alleged role in death of Bryan Vasquez
Mother charged with negligent homicide after autistic son killed in brutal alligator attack
Mother of 12-year-old boy asks for more time to find attorney after arrest
UPDATE: Mom Charged With Homicide After Autistic Son Found Killed by Alligators
Mom of boy, 12, killed by alligator charged with negligent homicide
Mother of autistic boy, 12, killed in alligator attack charged with homicide

Cecelia Cross

Name: Cecelia Cross.
Died: August 25, 2025.
Age at death: 10.
Cause of death: Suffocation.
Location: Pine River, Minnesota, USA.
Disability: Autism.

Details:
Cecelia and her sister had allegedly been regularly confined to their beds during the day. Enclosed in netting stretched over a broken metal frame, the girls, both high-needs children, were left alone with only a tablet computer for company. They were forced to use bedpans, though they were both perfectly capable of using a toilet. The parents had been advised by social services that the beds were not meant to be used to confine children during the day, only to keep them safe at night. They had also been offered repairs for Cece’s bed, which was broken; but they refused to allow the repairperson in the house.

Cecelia was found dead, trapped in her “safety bed” with her head wedged between the metal frame and the mattress. She had been dead for several hours; her parents admitted to having left her alone for at least ten hours that day.

Cecelia’s sister was taken to safety by social services. Her parents were arrested.

Case Status:
Darcy Cross (Father) is charged with second-degree manslaughter.
Heather Cross (Mother) is charged with second-degree manslaughter.

Sources:
Pine River Couple Charged with Manslaughter in 10-Year-Old Daughter’s Death
Couple charged in death of autistic daughter in Crow Wing County
10-Year-Old Autistic Girl Crushed To Death In Broken Bed, Parents Arrested
Parents arrested as autistic daughter, 10, ‘crushed to death by her own bed’
Girl with Autism, 10, Allegedly Crushed to Death by Her Own Bed — and Now Parents Face Charges
Crow Wing County couple neglected daughter with autism who died while confined to bed, charges say – CBS Minnesota
Girl with Autism, 10, Allegedly Crushed to Death by Her Own Bed — and Now Parents Face Charges
Girl with Autism, 10, Allegedly Crushed to Death by Her Own Bed — and Now Parents Face Charges
10-Year-Old Autistic Girl Crushed To Death In Broken Bed, Parents Arrested
Parents charged after autistic girl, 10, crushed to death in home

6-year-old boy

No Photo Name Unknown.
Died: July 15, 2025.
Age at death: 6.
Cause of death: Poisoned and/or smothered.
Location: Passaic, New Jersey, USA.
Disability: Autism.

Details:
This boy’s mother called police, reporting that her son was dead. When they arrived at her home, responders found the boy had been dead for about two days, and his mother allegedly confessed to having strangled or poisoned him; she said she had also attempted to take her own life.

Case Status:
Najika Martin (Mother) is charged with child endangerment. Prosecutors have called it a deliberate homicide.

Sources:
Mom charged in case of autistic 6-year-old found dead at New Jersey home
In Passaic, a mother faces serious charges after her autistic son was found dead in their apartment
Passaic mother charged after autistic son found dead in apparent failed murder-suicide attempt
NJ mom charged after 6-year-old autistic son found dead

Hershall Creachbaum

Name: Hershall Creachbaum.
Died: July 12, 2025 (Body found).
Age at death: 7.
Cause of death: Unknown.
Location: Dayton, Ohio, USA.
Disability: Autism; wheelchair user.

Details:
Hershall’s parents reported him as kidnapped. Shortly thereafter, his body was found–but he had been dead for some time. His parents are accused of dumping his body and reporting him missing; his cause of death is still under investigation because only skeletal remains were found.

Case Status:
Hershall’s death is considered a homicide investigation.
Ashley Noel Johnson (Mother) is charged with obstruction of justice and failure to report a death.
Michael Deshaun Kendrick (mother’s boyfriend) is charged with tampering with evidence and abuse of a corpse.

Sources:
Two people now in custody in connection to the death of 7-year-old boy, police say
7-year-old believed to have been dead for weeks before being found; mother among 2 charged
Autistic 7-Year-Old Boy Found Dead After Vanishing With Wheelchair; Person of Interest in Custody
Missing autistic child found dead in Dayton, mother and man arrested, chief says
Coroner’s report gives new details in investigation into 7-year-old’s death
School staff called Children Services ‘multiple times’ before 7-year-old’s death, 911 calls reveal
Defendant in Hershall Creachbaum case files motion to restrict public records access
Hershall Creachbaum Death: 7-year-old to be remembered with memorial at local school

Ralph Taylor III

Name: Ralph “RJ” Taylor III.
Died: July 10, 2025.
Age at death: 4.
Cause of death: Gunshot.
Location: Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA.
Disability: Autism.

Details:
RJ was allegedly shot by his father with a gun purchased by his mother. The couple claimed the bullet had come from outside through a window, but police found the gun and empty cartridge inside the house.

RJ’s neighbors remember him as a sweet, happy child. He communicated mostly by singing.

Case Status:
Ralph Taylor (Father), charged with first-degree intentional homicide and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon.
Casandra Taylor (Mother), charged with neglecting a child (consequence is death) and straw purchasing of a firearm.

Sources:
‘If allegations are true, you are a baby killer,’ commissioner tells father
Neighbors say they tried to save 4-year-old who died in shooting
Parents charged in shooting death of Milwaukee 4-year-old

9-year-old girl

No Photo Name Unknown.
Died: June 24, 2025.
Age at death: 9.
Cause of death: Abuse-related injuries.
Location: Melaka, Malaysia.
Disability: Mobility impairment; unable to walk.

Details:
This young girl was taken to the hospital, unconscious, with a broken leg and bruises all over her body. She died the next day.

Police suspect that she had been severely and repeatedly been beaten by her mother and stepfather.

Case Status:
Her mother and stepfather were arrested on suspicion of murder.

Sources:
Melaka couple remanded over death of disabled child allegedly abused at home
Melaka couple remanded over death of disabled 9-year-old girl
Child Abuse Suspected In Death Of 9-Year-Old Girl In Melaka
9-year-old girl with disability dies in M’sia after alleged long-term abuse by stepfather & mother

A’kyri Bell

No Photo Name: A’kyri Bell.
Died: June 13, 2025.
Age at death: 11.
Cause of death: Blunt trauma.
Location: Conway, South Carolina, USA.
Disability: ADHD, fainting disorder.

Details:
A’kyri lived with her cousin, who was her guardian and who also cared for four other children. The children were allegedly made to work at cleaning jobs. Medics called to the house for an unresponsive child who the caller said had “fainted in the bathtub” found A’kyri dead, covered in bruises of varying ages; she had been subjected to blunt trauma for some time, and it had proved fatal.

Case Status:
Camisha McGaskey (Cousin, guardian) is charged with murder, trafficking minors, criminal conspiracy, and obstruction of justice.
Margaret Robinson is charged with trafficking minors and criminal conspiracy.

Sources:
11-year-old girl who died from head injuries in South Carolina was victim of human trafficking, solicitor says
Guardian of 11-year-old girl charged with murder in ‘horrific crime,’ Horry County police chief says