Category: Age: Elder

Age 60+

James Wilkerson

Photo of a gravestone. It reads: EE3. James Ray Wilkerson. PRC US Navy. Vietnam. Oct 13 1948. Oct 18 2015. We love you Chief Dad.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

Mary Fields

No PhotoName: 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

Geraldine Chandler

No PhotoName: Geraldine Joyce Chandler.
Died: October 12, 2015.
Age at death: 84.
Cause of death: Restraint-related.
Location: Cleves, Ohio, USA.
Disability: “Functionally impaired”.

Details:
Geraldine’s caregivers allegedly caused her death; police reports are unclear how, but apparently they restrained or locked her up and failed to provide for her needs.

Case status:
Kimberly Taggart (Caregiver), pleaded guilty to involuntary manslaughter, sentenced to 8 years.
John Reid (Caregiver), guilty of failure to provide for a functionally impaired person, sentenced to 6 years.

Source:
John Reid | Madison Correctional | Ohio Inmates & Offenders
Caregiver sentenced in 84-year-old’s death
2 indicted in abduction, death of woman, 84

Thelma Hayner

No PhotoName: Thelma Ruth Hayner.
Died: September 23, 2015.
Age at death: 84.
Cause of death: Heart attack, aggravated by infection from untended pressure sores.
Location: Asheboro, North Carolina, USA.
Disability: Dementia, frail elder.

Details:
Thelma’s son and daughter-in-law allegedly neglected her, leaving her alone at home, locked into her room and in her bed. When she was finally taken to the hospital, doctors discovered multiple severe pressure sores and malnutrition. She died of a heart attack shortly thereafter, her body weakened by infection and poor care.

Case status:
James Hayner (Son), convicted of elder neglect resulting in serious injury and involuntary manslaughter, sentenced to 1 year 1 month to 2 years 1 month.
Kathleen Hayner (Daughter-in-law), convicted of elder neglect, sentenced to 10 months to 1 year 9 months.

Source:
State v. Hayner, 840 S.E.2d 539
Couple charged in alleged elder neglect death

John Pehota

Photo of John Pehota, a fair-skinned, balding man in a sports-themed sleeveless shirt and glasses.Name: John “Jack” Pehota.
Died: September 23, 2015.
Age at death: 77.
Cause of death: Gunshot.
Location: The Hammock, Florida, USA.
Disability: Heart condition, mobility impairment.

Details:
John was shot by his wife.

He loved the outdoors, especially hunting and fishing, and collected guns. In 2005, a local newspaper published a letter to the editor that John had written, in which he complained about a recent ban on beach-going vehicles. The ban on vehicles extended to John’s mobility scooter, and because he could not walk to the beach while carrying his fishing tackle, the ban prevented him from going fishing.

John owned a small dog and was often seen walking the dog around his neighborhood.

Case status:
Anna Pehota (Wife), convicted of second-degree murder, sentenced to life without parole, with a mandatory minimum of 25 years.

Source: Anna Pehota, 75, Charged With 2nd-Degree Murder for Shooting Husband in Hammock
“He Kept Pushing Me Mentally”: Anna and John Pehota’s Life Before She Shot Him

Margaret Yamaguchi

Photo of Margaret Yamaguchi, a middle-aged Asian woman wearing a white dress and holding a bouquet of red roses.Name: Margaret Machiko Yamaguchi.
Died: September 7, 2015.
Age at death: 61.
Cause of death: Stabbed.
Location: Covina, California, USA.
Disability: Unspecified (Assisted living facility resident).

Details:
Margaret’s daughter went to the assisted living center where she was staying and stabbed her to death.

Case status:
Athina Sumi Rivera (Daughter), pleaded guilty to second-degree murder, sentenced to 10-16 years.

Source:
Woman Allegedly Stabs Mother to Death at Assisted Living Facility in Covina
Woman gets 16 year prison sentence for stabbing mother to death at Covina senior living facility
Margaret Yamaguchi Obituary

Meryl Parry

Photo of Meryl Parry. She is an elderly woman with fair skin and white hair. She is outdoors, wearing a blue coat with the hood up.Name: Meryl Parry.
Died: September 2, 2015.
Age at death: 80.
Cause of death: Asphyxia.
Location: Ainstable, England, UK.
Disability: Dementia.

Details:
Meryl’s husband allegedly drugged her with sleeping pills, then put a plastic bag over her face and smothered her with a pillow.

Meryl was a retired teacher.

Case status:
Michael Parry (Husband); charged with murder, let out on bail, and committed suicide.

Source:
Murder of Meryl Parry by husband Michael ‘could not have been predicted’

Brian Darbyshire

No Photo
Name: Brian Darbyshire.
Died: September 2, 2015.
Age at death: 67.
Cause of death: Asphyxia.
Location: Dagenham, London, England, UK.
Disability: Multiple sclerosis.

Details:
Brian’s daughter suffocated him with a plastic bag. She claimed it had been an “assisted suicide” and that Brian had wanted to die because of his MS, but she was convicted of murder.

Case status:
Claire Darbyshire (Daughter), convicted of murder, sentenced to 4 years to life.

Source:
Carer who suffocated her bedridden father found guilty of murder
Convicted murderer living on streets of Hounslow after prison release

Sharon Johnson

No PhotoName: Sharon R. Johnson.
Died: August 27, 2015.
Age at death: 65.
Cause of death: Stabbed.
Location: Fairview, Mississippi, USA.
Disability: Unspecified.

Details:
Sharon was stabbed to death by her caregiver.

Case status:
Jimmy Carpenter (Caregiver), convicted of murder, sentenced to life without parole as a habitual offender.

Source:
Itawamba County murder suspect found guilty
Stabbing suspect charged with murder

Elaine Latshaw

No Photo
Name: Elaine Latshaw.
Died: August 15, 2015.
Age at death: 76.
Cause of death: Starvation, sepsis, pneumonia.
Location: Mahanoy City, Pennsylvania, USA.
Disability: Elderly; mobility impaired.

Details:
Elaine was neglected by her son and daughter-in-law. She died of a combination of starvation, systemic infection from untreated bedsores, and pneumonia.

Case status:
John F. Latshaw Jr. (Son), pled no contest to involuntary manslaughter, sentenced to 3-24 months in prison.
Dorothy Robinson (Daughter-in-law), pled no contest to involuntary manslaughter, sentenced to 3-24 months in prison.

Source:
Couple charged in woman’s death by neglect
Elder Abuse or Respecting Last Wishes?
Police Charge Couple in 2015 Death in Schuylkill County
2 from Mahanoy City to face homicide charges
2 sentenced for role in woman’s death