Age Categories – Page 137 – Disability Day of Mourning

Samantha Marcus

Black and white school photo of Samantha Marcus, a girl with light skin and long, dark hair, smiling for the camera. Name: Samantha Marcus.
Died: June 8, 2014.
Age at death: 17.
Cause of death: Asphyxia.
Location: Waukegan, Illinois, USA.
Disability: Muscular dystrophy.

Details:
Samantha and her mother, Sun Marcus, were both strangled to death by her father.

Samantha’s favorite subject in school was graphic arts. She played video games in her free time, and had two dogs named Snickers and Penny.

Case status:
Anthony Marcus (Father), pleaded guilty to first-degree murder, sentenced to 45 years.

Source:
Waukegan Man Charged With Killing Wife, Disabled Daughter
SAMANTHA MARCUS Obituary (1997 – 2014)

Shilpi Akter

No Photo Name: Shilpi Akter.
Died: June 8, 2014.
Age at death: Adult.
Cause of death: Stabbed.
Location: Jadurchar, Hemayetpur, Bangladesh.
Disability: Deaf.

Details:
Shilpi’s husband stabbed her to death.

Case status:
Md Sharif (Husband), convicted of murder, sentenced to death.

Source:
Man gets death for killing disabled wife at Savar

Rebecca Cotten

Photo of Rebecca Cotten, a very thin young woman. She is leaning forward toward another woman standing in front of her, so that her face is not visible. Name: Rebecca Cotten.
Died: May 29, 2014.
Age at death: 22.
Cause of death: Starvation.
Location: Memphis, Tennessee, USA.
Disability: Cerebral palsy.

Details:
Rebecca was allegedly abused and starved by her mother. She died weighing 40 pounds.

Case status:
Jennifer Cotten (Mother); charged with abuse and aggravated assault.
Nicholas Newquest, charged with abuse.

Source:
Second arrest made in death of 24-year-old woman with disabilities
Abused woman who weighed 40 pounds dies
Mother charged in death of disabled daughter, 22, who weighed 40lbs

Mary Driscoll

No Photo Name: Mary Driscoll.
Died: May 24, 2014.
Age at death: 94.
Cause of death: Head injury.
Location: Brick, New Jersey, USA.
Disability: Dementia, “frail”.

Details:
Mary’s granddaughter came home drunk and angry from a date and took out her anger on her grandmother, beating her badly, leaving her lying on the floor without medical attention for a weekend, and then beating her again.

A friend of her granddaughter’s who saw Mary’s injuries called 911. Mary was taken to the hospital, but she had suffered head injuries that were too severe to survive. She died eight days after the initial beating.

Case status:
Katherine Schubert (Granddaughter), pleaded guilty to manslaughter, sentenced to 5-10 years.

Source:
Mary F. Driscoll Obituary
Granny killer, teacher’s murder on the docket
Woman sentenced for beating grandmother to death
Woman drank Maker’s Mark, beat grandma to death

Barbara Poucher

No Photo Name: Barbara Poucher.
Died: May 23, 2014.
Age at death: 86.
Cause of death: Gunshot.
Location: Ormond Beach, Florida, USA.
Disability: Alzheimer’s disease.

Details:
Barbara was shot dead in her bed by her husband in a murder-suicide.

Case status:
John Poucher (Husband), deceased.

Source:
Caregivers who kill their spouses share traits, experts say
2 dead in apparent murder-suicide in Ormond Beach
Police: Ormond man, 89, shoots, kills wife with Alzheimer’s, then himself
Double-Killing in Ormond Beach: Not Murder-Suicide, But Mercy and Heroism

Anja Dewees

No Photo Name: Anja Dewees.
Died: May 20, 2014.
Age at death: 45.
Cause of death: Skull fracture.
Location: Enfield, Connecticut, USA.
Disability: Chronic illness; liver failure; alcoholism.

Details:
Anja was neglected and abused by her husband and caretaker. She died of a particularly vicious beating, weighing only 70 pounds.

Case status:
John Dewees Jr. (Husband), pleaded guilty to manslaughter, sentenced to 15 years in prison.

Source:
Anja Dewees – Thursday, May 22nd, 2014
Enfield Murder Suspect Did Not Want to Change Wife’s Diaper: Police
Enfield man gets 15 years in beating death of chronically ill wife

Heaven Woods

Photo of Heaven Woods, a little girl with tan skin and curly brown hair, in a pink tutu, holding a doll. Name: Heaven Woods.
Died: May 20, 2014.
Age at death: 5.
Cause of death: Internal bleeding, blunt trauma.
Location: Forsyth, Georgia, USA.
Disability: ADHD; mother claims autism.

Details:
When Heaven had hand-shaped bruises on her throat, her mother claimed she was autistic and tried to choke herself. Eventually, Heaven was beaten to death by her mother and her mother’s boyfriend.

Case status:
Amanda Hendrickson (Mother), pleaded guilty to murder, sentenced to life.
Roderick Buckner (Mother’s boyfriend), pleaded guilty to murder, sentenced to life without parole.

Source:
Autism Memorial: Heaven Woods
Man pleads guilty in Heaven Woods’ death, mother still facing death penalty
Mom guilty in ‘savage’ beating death of 5-year-old Heaven Woods
Rome girl, 5, died of blunt force trauma; pregnant mother arrested
Grandmother of slain girl wants death penalty for daughter
Mother and boyfriend ‘beat her five-year-old daughter named Heaven to death three weeks after child services dropped abuse investigation’
Father of 5-year-old Heaven still in shock over her death

Krystyna Waszynski

No Photo Name: Krystyna Waszynski.
Died: December 2013; body found May 14, 2014.
Age at death: 86.
Cause of death: Asphyxia.
Location: Wethersfield, Connecticut, USA.
Disability: Elderly disabled, “mostly bedridden”.

Details:
Krystyna Wasynski was strangled to death by her son. He did not report the death for several months, afraid of being charged with murder.

Krystyna was the widow of Julian Waszynski, an Auschwitz survivor who died in 2005. She left behind three grandchildren.

Case status:
John Waszynski (Son), charged with murder; found not guilty by reason of insanity, committed to a mental institution.

Source:
Connecticut man not guilty of mother’s murder by reason of insanity
Court Document: Wethersfield Man Confessed To Killing 86-Year-Old Mom
John Waszynski charged with mother’s murder after her body is found in their home
Man charged with murdering mother, living with body
Waszynski, Julian

Magdalena Amunyoko

No Photo Name: Magdalena Nunyango Amunyoko.
Died: May 9, 2014.
Age at death: 26.
Cause of death: Sharp force injury.
Location: Ongwediva, Namibia.
Disability: A “rare condition that restricted her body functions”; speech impediment, wheelchair user.

Details:
Magdalena’s mother allegedly hacked her to death with a panga (a type of machete), and then burned her body.

Case status:
Magdalena’s mother, arrested.

Source:
No right to end another’s life – youth
Teacher Accused Of Barbecuing Disabled Daughter: Report
No right to end another’s life – youth
Teacher kills, burns daughter on braai stand

Jessica Watkins

Name: Jessica Watkins.
Died: May 4, 2014.
Age at death: 21.
Cause of death: Stabbed, strangled.
Location: Newport, Wales, UK.
Disability: Learning disability, ADHD, autism spectrum disorder.

Details:
Jessica was an extrovert who liked to party. She was a gaming fan who frequented Newport City Gaming, a club that creates videos and live shows based on video games.

Jessica was abused by her boyfriend, who finally killed her by stabbing and strangling her. He had nearly strangled her a month earlier, but the people who completed a Vulnerable Adult Review on her situation did nothing to help, and Jessica returned to her boyfriend.

Case status:
Kristopher Mitchell (Boyfriend), convicted of murder, sentenced to 16 years 8 months to life.

Source:
Autism Memorial: Jessica Watkins
Woman murdered by her boyfriend had been strangled by him a month before – Wales Online
Kristopher Mitchell jailed for Jessica Watkins murder
Newport man, Kristopher Mitchell, admits murder of Jessica Watkins whose body was found in the bath of a house on Bryn Bevan, Brynglas
Jessica Watkins’ murder ‘could not have been prevented’ – report finds
‘This was a brutal attack on a defenceless 21-year-old’: Boyfriend jailed for fatally stabbing Jessica Watkins 27 times in his bathroom