Age: Elder – Page 40 – Disability Day of Mourning

Margaret Sinclair

Photo of Peggy Sinclair. She is an elderly woman with light skin and gray hair; she is wearing glasses, which are slipping down her nose, and a polka-dotted beige headscarf. Name: Margaret “Peggy” Sinclair.
Died: June 18, 2016; body found June 21, 2016.
Age at death: 85.
Cause of death: Blunt trauma.
Location: Lake Frederick, Virginia, USA.
Disability: Dementia.

Details:
Peggy was beaten to death with a hammer and dismembered by her caregiver.

Case status:
Frances Charlene Moss Hopkins (Unlicensed caregiver, unrelated), pleaded no contest to second-degree murder, sentenced to 20 years.

Source:
Police say 85 year old Peg Sinclair’s caregiver has been arrested for murder
Berryville woman charged with first-degree murder
BREAKING: Elderly woman found dead,caregiver arrested for murder
Search ongoing for missing elderly woman
Sentencing for caregiver who killed, dismembered 85-year-old delayed to Tuesday
Moss-Hopkins to serve 20 years in prison for murder of elderly woman

Jean Irwin

Flowers left at Jean Irwin's house. They are purple and white flowers, lying on a curb next to a brick wall and wrought-iron gate. Name: Jean Elizabeth Irwin.
Died: June 20, 2016.
Age at death: 83.
Cause of death: Asphyxia.
Location: Shanklin, Isle of Wight, England, UK.
Disability: Dementia.

Details:
Jean’s husband killed her by bludgeoning her with a hammer, then strangling her, before taking his own life.

Case status:
John David Irwin (Husband), deceased.

Source:
Shanklin couple found strangled and hanged
Terminal cancer patient who killed dementia-suffering wife left note to say ‘sorry for nuisance’ then took own life
Shanklin deaths: Man strangled woman and killed himself
Police launch murder investigation into Shanklin death
Pensioner, 77, is found hanged alongside body of his wife, 83
Murder investigation after two elderly people found dead in home
Man with terminal cancer killed dementia patient wife, left note to say ‘sorry for the nuisance’ and took own life
Pensioner, 77, who killed his ill wife before taking his own life apologises
Pensioner’s heartbreaking suicide note after killing wife he couldn’t care for

Rietje Willms

Photo of Rietje Willms, an elder woman. She has short white hair and fair skin, and is wearing a black turtleneck and white jacket. Her expression is solemn, and she is squinting slightly into the sun. Name: Rietje Willms.
Died: June 12, 2016.
Age at death: 80.
Cause of death: Morphine overdose.
Location: Amsterdam, Netherlands.
Disability: Dementia.

Details:
Rietje was the widow of a successful plumber and real estate dealer. She had inherited his money, and one of her four sons wanted it. When he saw that Rietje was getting dementia, he manipulated her into making him her sole heir. Then he locked her away in his house and neglected her; another of her sons said that sometimes, when he walked by the house, he could hear her in the house, crying to be let out. Rietje was eventually found dead with dangerous levels of morphine in her body and a morphine tablet under her tongue. When police questioned her son, he confessed to having poisoned her.

Case status:
Hans W. (Son), convicted of murder, sentenced to 15 years 9 months in prison.

Source:
Zoon definitief de cel in voor moord op Rietje Willms
Son held in senile mother’s death; Fight over inheritance alleged
Demente Rietje Willms (80) overleden door verwaarlozing eigen zoon
Man verdacht van bizarre moord op zijn eigen moeder om de erfenis
Vermoorde moeder over verdachte zoon: ‘We kunnen goed opschieten hoor’
‘Bejaarde vrouw vermoord om de erfenis’ – AT5: de nieuwszender van Amsterdam en omgeving
Bizarre moord om erfenis
Moord om de erfenis
‘Zoon vast wegens betrokkenheid bij dood moeder’

Charlene Norris

Photo of Charlene Norris. She is a middle-aged woman with short permed blond hair and fair skin, wearing a black and white track suit. Name: Charlene Norris.
Died: June 9, 2016.
Age at death: 79.
Cause of death: Gunshot.
Location: Charlotte, North Carolina, USA.
Disability: Dementia, rectal cancer, chronic pain due to hip replacement.

Details:
Charlene was shot by her husband.

She was a retired special education teacher.

Case status:
Jim Norris (Husband), charged with murder; diagnosed with dementia while awaiting trial, declared incompetent to stand trial.

Source:
84-year-old North Carolina man cleared in wife’s death
Two suicide notes, one body. Now an elderly Charlotte man is charged with murder.
They had a suicide pact, he said. But he wasn’t ready to die. He murdered her, prosecutors say

Henry Sochalski

Black and white photo of Henry Sochalski. He has dark hair and fair skin, and is wearing a policeman's uniform and glasses. He has a bushy mustache. Name: Henry A. “Butch” Sochalski.
Died: May 19, 2016.
Age at death: 64.
Cause of death: Asphyxia.
Location: Daytona Beach, Florida, USA.
Disability: Recent hypoxic brain injury; back problems.

Details:
Henry went to the hospital for elective surgery to help with his back problems, but the surgery went badly and Henry went into cardiac arrest. He was resuscitated, but his brain had been injured from lack of oxygen.

Henry’s wife, who had worked as a nurse for forty years, first tried to kill him by getting the nurses to give him a medication that would have depressed his breathing, but they refused. Then she pressed the button on his patient-administered pain medication over and over, trying to poison him, but the device automatically limited itself to a safe dose. In the end she allegedly lay across his chest, pinched his nose, and suffocated him.

Henry Sochalski was a retired police officer. He loved riding his motorcycle.

Case status:
Jan Sochalski (Wife), charged with second-degree murder, died before trial.

Sources:
Murder defendant found dead in her Palm Coast home
Sochalski Obituary
A man was suffocated to death in the hospital. The suspect? His wife, a retired nurse.
Florida woman accused of killing husband in hospital bed
Florida woman allegedly murdered husband by plugging his nose
Henry & Jan Sochalski: 5 Fast Facts You Need to Know
Palm Coast wife accused of killing husband at Florida Hospital held on $250,000 bail
Wife charged with killing former N.J. cop in Fla.

Carolyn Hager

Portrait photo of Carolyn Hager, an elderly woman with pale blond hair. Name: Carolyn Hager.
Died: May 16, 2016.
Age at death: 78.
Cause of death: Gunshot.
Location: Port St. Lucie, Florida, USA.
Disability: Arthritis, lung cancer, chronic illness.

Details:
Carolyn’s husband shot her in the head.

Carolyn’s neighbors remember her as an artistic woman who maintained a beautiful garden and could often be seen outside tending her plants.

Case status:
William J. Hager (Husband), pleaded no contest to manslaughter, sentenced to nine years.

Source:
Port St. Lucie man who killed ailing wife in ‘act of love’ gets 9 years
Police: Man killed wife because he couldn’t afford medications
Florida Man Says He Killed Sick Wife Because He Couldn’t Afford Her Medicine, Sheriff Says
Port St. Lucie man accused of shooting wife because she was in pain & he couldn’t afford medications
Port St. Lucie man charged with murder in wife’s killing
Police: Man kills wife, blames high medication prices
Man says he killed sick wife because he couldn’t afford her medication

Gertrud Sigman

No Photo Name: Gertrud “Trudy” Sigman.
Died: May 7, 2016.
Age at death: 92.
Cause of death: Asphyxia.
Location: Orange Park, Florida, USA.
Disability: Alzheimer’s disease.

Details:
Gertrud, whom everyone called Trudy, was a retired professional ballet dancer who had graduated from the Vienna Conservatory. She liked to cook and garden.

Trudy was beaten and strangled to death by her son.

Case status:
Lawrence Sigman (Son), deceased.

Source:
Clay County Sheriff’s Office closes case as murder-suicide
Death investigation underway in wake of domestic dispute
Clay County Sheriff’s Office closes case as murder-suicide
Obituary | Trudy Sigman of Orange Park, Florida

Marie Stempinski

Name: Marie Stempinski.
Died: April 29, 2016.
Age at death: 72.
Cause of death: Gunshot.
Location: St. Petersburg, Florida, USA.
Disability: Mobility impairment from hip injury.

Details:
Before she retired, Marie had worked as a TV news reporter, then as a public relations consultant. When she suffered a hip injury, she started using a wheelchair.

Marie’s husband shot her and then killed himself.

Case status:
Gerard Stempinski (Husband), deceased.

Source:
St. Petersburg, Florida: Man shoots wheelchair-bound wife and then kills himself
Ex-cop Gerard Stempinski kills wife Marie then himself in murder-suicide in Florida

Patricia Gordon

No Photo Name: Patricia Gordon.
Died: April 28, 2016.
Age at death: 63.
Cause of death: Smothered.
Location: Troon, Scotland, UK.
Disability: Health anxiety, depression, lung cancer.

Details:
Patricia hated doctors and didn’t want to go to see one, but was worried that she had lung cancer. One day when she was in pain, instead of taking her to a doctor, her husband smothered her to death with a pillow.

Although he admitted to killing her, the murder charge was dropped after a family member explained to the court how sick Patricia had been and how hard it had been for her husband to care for her.

Case status:
Ian Gordon (Husband), convicted of culpable homicide, sentenced to 3 years, 4 months; sentence overturned, released.

Source:
Pensioner cleared of murder after smothering his wife
Husband who smothered wife to death with pillow cleared of murder
Troon pillow killer Ian Gordon jailed for three years
Judges overturn sentence for man who killed his wife
Husband jailed for culpable homicide over ‘mercy killing’ of terminally wife admonished following appeal

Patricia Myers

Close-up photo of Patricia Myers, a middle-aged African-american woman. Name: Patricia Myers.
Died: April 23, 2016.
Age at death: 69.
Cause of death: Beaten, stabbed.
Location: Bronx, New York, USA.
Disability: Chronic lung disease.

Details:
Patricia was a retired nurse.

Her nephew had just been released from prison, so Patricia welcomed him into her home. Then she disappeared, leaving behind the oxygen tank and mask she needed to breathe, and police dogs found blood in her apartment. Her nephew confessed to beating and stabbing her to death and burying her body in a suitcase.

Case status:
Andros Topping (Nephew), pleaded guilty to second-degree murder, sentenced to 15 years to life.

Source:
Ex-con gets 15 years to life for killing his aunt in her Bronx home and stuffing her body in a suitcase
Ex-con charged with murder reportedly confesses to beating aunt to death
Nephew of missing retired Bronx nurse charged with murder, manslaughter for her death