Age Categories – Page 130 – Disability Day of Mourning

Malachi Golden

Photo of a toddler in a sling-style stroller. He is chewing on a raw carrot, and wearing a bulky helmet. Name: Malachi De’Andre Golden.
Died: May 11, 2015.
Age at death: 4.
Cause of death: Malnutrition.
Location: High Shoals, North Carolina, USA.
Disability: Chromosomal disorder, epilepsy, developmental delays.

Details:
Malachi was physically abused by his stepfather and mother over an extended period of time. He was also starved and neglected, his seizure medication was withheld, and he was denied medical care. His mother kept him in a small closet, without food and water. Malachi died from starvation, weighing 19 pounds; his mother also said that his stepfather had strangled him.

Two years after Malachi died, courthouse staff took up a collection to get Malachi a proper headstone.

Case status:
Thomas Cheeks (Stepfather), convicted of first-degree murder and child abuse; sentenced to life without parole.
Tiffany Cheeks (Mother), pleaded guilty to second-degree murder and child abuse, sentenced to 19 years.

Source:
North Carolina Supreme Court upholds murder charge in starvation death of 4-year-old child
New report: Child strangled to death
Stepdad offered plea deal in boy’s death
Abuse charges for accused child killer
Court clerks raise money to buy grave marker for boy who starved to death
Mother served murder papers in disabled boy’s death
Gaston County mother could get life in prison for 4-year-old son’s death
GASTON CO. MOM CHARGED IN SON’S MURDER: 19 more years in prison for Gaston County mother in 4-year-old son’s death

Emily Janzen

Photo of a young woman with pale skin and long, wavy brown hair, wearing a blue dress. She is smiling. Name: Emily Janzen.
Died: May 7, 2015.
Age at death: 19.
Cause of death: Gunshot.
Location: Rosedale, British Columbia, Canada.
Disability: Migraines, depression.

Details:
Emily and her family were shot by her father, who said he could not “watch his little girl hurt for one more second” before he killed Emily, then killed her mother Laurel and aunt to spare them the pain of hearing that Emily was dead, and then killed himself.

Emily was a music student who aspired to be an opera singer.

Case status:
Randy Janzen (Father), deceased.

Source:
Emily Janzen Remembered As ‘Amazing’ Singer After B.C. Triple Murder, Suicide

Angel Goodwin

Photo of a boy with tan skin and scruffy black hair, grinning at the camera. Name: Angel Goodwin.
Died: May 5, 2015.
Age at death: 10.
Cause of death: Drowning.
Location: Wheat Ridge, Colorado, USA.
Disability: Cerebral palsy; multiple disabilities.

Details:
Angel, who had severe disabilities, was abused by his grandmother and her boyfriends. Angel’s grandmother put him in a tub full of water and left him there for more than three hours. Unable to keep his head out of the water, Angel drowned.

Case status:
Onesia Najera (Grandmother), pleaded guilty to child abuse resulting in death, sentenced to 20 years in prison.

Source:
Wheat Ridge police investigating the death of a 10-year-old
Grandmother charged in death of 10-year-old in Wheat Ridge
Woman gets 20 years in prison for grandson’s drowning death
Grandmother sentenced in drowning death of boy with cerebral palsy
Jefferson County woman who drowned developmentally-disabled grandson sentenced to 20 years

Brooke MacBeth

Photo of a young woman with fair skin and brown hair pulled back in a ponytail, wearing a scarf over a beige sweater. Name: Brooke MacBeth.
Died: Unknown. Body found May 3, 2015, six months to a year after death.
Age at death: 28.
Cause of death: Unknown.
Location: Lakeside, California, USA.
Disability: Cerebral palsy.

Details:
What happened to Brooke is unknown. All we know is that she was found dead, weighing only forty pounds, stuffed into a suitcase in her mother’s apartment, with amphetamine, marijuana, and oxycodone in her system. An autopsy did not find evidence of trauma, but most such evidence would no longer have been detectable because Brooke had been in the suitcase for several months.

Brooke’s teachers remember her strong voice, engaging smile, and long ponytail.

Case status:
Bonnie MacBeth (mother), no charges.

Source:
Teachers Remember Former Student Found Dead in Suitcase
Officials Make Disturbing Discovery While Serving Eviction Notice
Officials: Body found in trunk was woman’s daughter
Loved ones remember life of disabled woman found in suitcase
Disabled Woman’s Body Found in Suitcase at Mom’s San Diego-Area Home Weighed Just 40 Pounds: Autopsy
Body Found in Suitcase Identified
Woman in suitcase likely died of natural causes: ME

Umesh

No Photo
Name: Umesh.
Died: May 1, 2015.
Age at death: 35.
Cause of death: Traumatic injury.
Location: Amatekoppa, Shikaripur, India.
Disability: Physical disability.

Details:
Police first categorized Umesh’s death as a hit-and-run, but they received tips that Umesh’s brother had taken out three life insurance policies on him and killed him to collect the money. They now suspect that Umesh’s brother rented a mini-truck, drove him out to the outskirts of a village, and ran him over.

Case status:
Kumar (Brother), arrested, charged with murder.

Source:
Man held on charge of murdering disabled brother

Aidan Fenton

Portrait photo of a seated toddler boy with dark straight hair and fair skin, wearing a dark vest over a white dress shirt. Name: Aidan Fenton.
Died: April 27, 2015.
Age at death: 7.
Cause of death: Insulin deprivation.
Location: Hurstville, New South Wales, Australia.
Disability: Juvenile diabetes.

Details:
Aidan died after a “slapping therapy” workshop, a treatment that included several days of fasting and repeated, hard slaps meant to cause bruising and “release toxins”. He may also have been taken off insulin by his parents.

Case status:
Hong Chi Xiao (Healer), found guilty of manslaughter, sentenced to 7-10 years in prison.
Aidan’s parents Lily and Geoff Fenton were not charged and are suing the medical practice.

Source:
Aidan Fenton, 7, was made to fast before ‘slapping therapy’, then he vomited and died
Couple sue medical practice over the death of their son
Chinese ‘slapping therapy’ healer jailed over Australian diabetic boy’s death

20-year-old man

No Photo Name Unknown.
Died: April 26, 2015.
Age at death: 20.
Cause of death: Stabbed.
Location: Copenhagen, Denmark.
Disability: Intellectual disability.

Details:
This young man was fatally stabbed in the neck by his younger sister. She told police, “I’ve just always hated him because he has ruined my life.”

Case status:
His 15-year-old sister. Ruled not guilty because of mental illness; sent to a psychiatric ward for treatment and eventual release.

Source:
15-årig pige erkender at have stukket sin bror ihjel
15-årig pige erkender: Jeg slog min storebror ihjel
15-årig pige stak sin bror ihjel: Moderen skrev lang artikel om deres problemer
15-årig pige stak storebror ihjel: ‘Nu har de mistet begge børn’
15-årig pige tilstår knivdrab: Stak storebror i halsen
16-årig pige hadede sin storebror og dræbte ham med kniv
Danish girl killed disabled brother who ‘ruined life’

Mr. Lin

No Photo
Name: Mr. Lin (Surname; given name unknown).
Died: April 22, 2015.
Age at death: 8.
Cause of death: Asphyxia.
Location: Kaohsiung, Taiwan.
Disability: Cerebral palsy, epilepsy.

Details:
Young Lin’s father was annoyed that his neighbors kept parking their motorcycles outside his house, blocking the wheelchair ramp. One day, drunk and enraged at the neighbors, young Lin’s father went inside, grabbed him in his wheelchair, and, to demonstrate his point that the motorcycles were hazardous, rammed the boy into one of the parked motorcycles. The motorcycle toppled, the wheelchair tipped over, and young Lin suffocated. His father made no attempt to help him.

Case status:
His father, also surnamed Lin; convicted of causing the death of a child, sentenced to 7-and-a-half years.

Source:
The Father Who Pushed His Own Handicapped Son into Oncoming Traffic, Causing His Death is Sentenced
Jail for man who caused death of disabled son

Gary Blanton III

Photo of Gary Blanton III. He has fair skin and light brown hair. He is smiling for the camera. Name: Gary Blanton III.
Died: April 18, 2015.
Age at death: 5.
Cause of death: Fractured skull.
Location: Chattaroy, Washington, USA.
Disability: Developmental disability, possible autism.

Details:
Gary died from a fractured skull while in the custody of his aunt, who had custody of him after his parents died. Authorities discovered that his caseworker had been falsifying health-and-wellness visit reports.

Gary was a rambunctious child who ran up and down the hallways and even climbed into the washing machine.

Case status:
Cynthia Rose Khaleel (Aunt); charged with second-degree murder, acquitted.

Source:
Autism Memorial: Gary Blanton III
Jury acquits Chattaroy woman of killing 5-year-old nephew
Chattaroy woman arrested for five-year-old nephew’s death
Obituary
‘Everyone failed him’: Boy’s aunt accused of murder, DSHS accused of ‘critical errors’

Annie Ee

Name: Annie Ee Yu Lian.
Died: April 13, 2015.
Age at death: 26.
Cause of death: Fat embolism.
Location: Singapore.
Disability: Intellectual disability.

Details:
Annie lived with a friend and her husband. She worked as a waitress.

Her caregivers took her salary, repeatedly beat her, and did not seek medical care when she was obviously dying. She died from a fat embolism, a clump of fat that tore loose from her injuries and clogged a critical blood vessel. She had a ruptured stomach and many broken bones from eight months of torture.

Case status:
Tan Hui Zhen (Housemate), pleaded guilty to causing grievous hurt, sentenced to 16-and-a-half years in jail.
Pua Hak Chuan (Housemates), pleaded guilty to causing grievous hurt, sentenced to 14 years in jail and 14 strokes of the cane.
Neither could be charged with murder because they “did not intend to kill” Annie, and because she died of a fat embolism, which is a rare medical complication.

Source:
Couple ‘tortured’ intellectually disabled waitress, who died after 8 months of abuse
Couple plead guilty to torturing mentally disabled ‘friend’ for 8 months until she died
Couple abused intellectually disabled waitress to completely control her: Prosecutors
Mentally disabled woman dies after being abused for 8 months by couple
Couple tortured intellectually disabled woman for months until she died
Over 18,000 signatures received for petition to seek heavier punishment for abusers of deceased intellectually disabled waitress
Couple who tortured friend to death: Wife gets 16½ years’ jail, husband gets 14 years, 14 strokes of the cane
‘They were like gangsters’: Neighbour of couple who ‘tortured’ intellectually disabled woman
‘An apology is not enough’: Brother of woman who beat Annie Ee to death
People around Annie Ee knew something bad was happening
Couple who tortured Annie Ee: Prosecutor could not charge them with murder, says AGC