Remembering the Disabled Murdered by Caregivers
Age 60+
Name: Girija.
Died: April 21, 2022.
Age at death: 68.
Cause of death: Strangled.
Location: Melamcode, Kerala, India.
Disability: Unspecified; bedridden.
Details:
Girija was found dead by her son; she had been strangled. Police arrested her husband, whom they suspect of killing her before injuring himself non-fatally.
Case Status:
Sadasivan Nair (Husband), hospitalized; will be arrested when his injuries are treated.
Sources:
Woman’s death turns out to be murder
Name: Richard Judson Rutherford.
Died: April 15, 2022.
Age at death: 87.
Cause of death: Unspecified homicide.
Location: Ottawa, Ontario, Canada.
Disability: Mobility impaired, cognitive decline.
Details:
Richard died the victim of homicide; his husband was arrested and charged with his murder, which is being called a “mercy killing”.
Richard was a former principal dancer in the Royal Winnipeg Ballet who worked with the Canada Council for the Arts after he retired as a dancer. In his elder years, he tended his garden and watched the birds and chipmunks that came to his feeder.
Case Status:
Philippe Hébert (Husband), charged with second-degree murder.
Sources:
The ‘tragic and profoundly human’ story of Richard Rutherford and Philippe Hébert
Bail granted to Ottawa man charged with second-degree murder in the death of his spouse
Ottawa man charged with murder after elderly man found dead on Good Friday
Richard RUTHERFORD Obituary (1935 – 2022)
Name: Chen (Surname); given name unknown.
Died: April 15, 2022.
Age at death: 64.
Cause of death: Strangled.
Location: Ershui, Changhua County, Taiwan.
Disability: Stroke.
Details:
Mr. Chen was strangled, and his brother was arrested for the crime. Police say he had killed Mr. Chen and attempted to kill himself because he was tired of caring for his brother.
Case Status:
Mr. Chen (Brother), arrested.
Sources:
Changhua man found dead, brother injured – Taipei Times
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Name: Nellie Sullivan.
Died: April 14, 2022 (Body found).
Age at death: 92.
Cause of death: Unknown homicide.
Location: Candler, North Carolina, USA.
Disability: Dementia; frail elder.
Details:
Nellie’s granddaughter and her boyfriend took her out of the nursing home where she was living and brought her to live with them at their trailer. Shortly afterward, Nellie disappeared, though her caregivers continued cashing her social security checks and filling her prescriptions. Suspicious police arrested and charged the couple with fraud, animal cruelty, and concealing a death; but Nellie’s body was not found for two years, until a neighbor’s pet duck ran under the trailer and led police to the shallow grave where Nellie was buried.
A neighbor remembers Nellie as a kind woman who once made her daughter a Halloween costume out of a shower curtain.
Case Status:
Angela Wamsley (Granddaughter), charged with first-degree murder.
Mark Barnes (Granddaughter’s boyfriend), charged with first-degree murder.
Sources:
Couple arrested for murdering grandmother after the elderly woman’s pet duck led police to her body | Daily Mail Online
Pet duck leads to discovery of woman’s body under home; suspects charged with murder
Sheriff’s Office Says N.C. Couple Charged with Killing Grandmother Sent Deputies on a ‘Wild Goose Chase’ That Was Solved by a Pet Duck
Couple charged in 2020 concealing death case lived at home where human remains found
‘I just hope this is her’: Woman hopeful human remains confirmed to be missing neighbor
Name: Helen Lawrie.
Died: April 4, 2022.
Age at death: 83.
Cause of death: Head injury.
Location: Cromer, England, UK.
Disability: Dementia, mobility impaired, speech impaired, low vision.
Details:
Helen’s husband killed her before taking his own life.
Helen was a member of the Royal Cromer Golf Club. She owned hair salons and taught hairdressing.
Case Status:
Alexander Lawrie (Husband), deceased.
Sources:
Inquest verdict found couple died in ‘unlawful killing and suicide’ – Cromer
Inquests open into deaths at home of Cromer couple
Husband kills wife before taking his own life in tragic dementia pact
Name: Thomas Conley.
Died: March 20, 2022.
Age at death: 63.
Cause of death: Head injury, blood loss.
Location: Sherman, Connecticut, USA.
Disability: Anemia, alcoholic liver disease.
Details:
Thomas’s husband hit him in the head. Already weakened by poor health, Thomas died from blood loss from several scalp wounds.
Case Status:
James Maharg (Husband), convicted of murder and evidence tampering, sentenced to 35 years in prison and 10 years special parole.
Sources:
Sherman man convicted in husband’s death sentenced to 35 years
Sherman man James Maharg found guilty in murder of his husband
Sherman man’s ‘compromised’ health contributed to his death, says expert for defense in murder trial
New details emerge in Sherman murder
Alcohol may have fueled Sherman murder
Name: Rosemary Webster.
Died: March 16, 2022.
Age at death: 85.
Cause of death: Blunt trauma.
Location: La Quinta, California, USA.
Disability: Dementia.
Details:
Rosemary died from a severe beating. Police say her daughter called them and reported that Rosemary had wanted to go visit a relative, though it was no longer safe for her to drive, and that she had “snapped” and beaten Rosemary severely, tied her up, left her, and found her dead in the morning.
Case Status:
Sally Martha Webster (Daughter), charged with murder.
Sources:
La Quinta Woman Accused Of Killing Elderly Mom Ordered To Stand Trial
Prosecutors say La Quinta woman, overwhelmed and angry over mother’s dementia, killed her
Name: Toyoko Amano.
Died: February 13, 2022.
Age at death: 72.
Cause of death: Asphyxia.
Location: Osaka, Japan.
Disability: Unspecified; bedridden.
Details:
Police say Toyoko’s husband called police and admitted to strangling her. When they went to her home, they found her dead and arrested her husband.
Case Status:
Seiji Amano (Husband), arrested on suspicion of murder.
Sources:
80-year-old man arrested over bedridden wife’s murder
Name: Melvin Weller.
Died: February 11, 2022.
Age at death: 62.
Cause of death: Stabbed.
Location: Palm Springs, Florida, USA.
Disability: Unspecified; mobility impaired, poor grip strength.
Details:
Police were called to Melvin’s home and found him dead on his kitchen floor, having been stabbed more than 140 times. His wife was arrested on suspicion of murder.
The two were in the midst of divorce proceedings, and had been working out how to split up the couple’s real estate. After the divorce, Melvin planned to retire to Jamaica, where he had been born.
Case Status:
Joan Burke (Wife), pleaded guilty to second-degree murder, sentenced to 35 years.
Sources:
Florida woman charged with murder after allegedly stabbing husband 140 times
FL woman, 61, is accused of stabbing her disabled husband to death
61-Year-Old Woman Stabbed Her Physically Disabled Husband More Than 140 Times: Police
Police: Palm Springs woman, 61, stabbed husband more than 140 times
Jamaica Observer Limited
Florida woman facing murder charges after allegedly stabbing her husband more than 140 times
Name: Edward Kessler.
Died: February 7, 2022.
Age at death: 64.
Cause of death: Strangled.
Location: Elizaville, New York, USA.
Disability: Unspecified; vulnerable elder.
Details:
Ed had been living with a couple for more than twenty years when he was found dead. Police suspect the couple of abusing him, stealing from him, and ultimately causing his death by strangulation.
Case Status:
Cassandra Fischer (Housemate), pleaded guilty to attempted murder and grand larceny; sentenced to 15 years.
Ryan Woods (Housemate), pleaded guilty to attempted murder, sentenced to 15 years.
Sources:
Two Columbia County residents admit to strangling man to steal his money
Elizaville couple charged in death of elderly housemate
2 Elizaville residents plead not guilty to murder charges
Edward Kessler’s mysterious death in Columbia County is a homicide, official says
State police continue investigating February Columbia County death