Category: Age Categories

Nicolai Emelyantsev

Photo of Nicolai Emelyantsev, a solemn infant in pajamas; he has a wisp of blond hair and a round face with very pale skin.Name: Nicolai Emelyantsev.
Died: March 7, 2008.
Age at death: 14 months.
Cause of death: Skull fracture.
Location: Tooele, Utah, USA.
Disability: Down syndrome.

Details:
Nicolai’s adoptive mother killed him by deliberately slamming him against the floor, causing a skull fracture.

Case status:
Kimberly Emelyantsev (Adoptive mother), pleaded guilty to child-abuse homicide, sentenced to 1-15 years.

Source:
Kimberly Emelyantsev | Murderpedia, the encyclopedia of murderers
Nicolai Emelyantsev

Michelle Thomson

Photo of Michelle Thomson, a teenage girl with wavy brown hair and light skin, wearing a striped shirt.Name: Michelle Thomson.
Died: March 5, 2008.
Age at death: 25.
Cause of death: Stabbed.
Location: Buckhaven, Fife, Scotland.
Disability: Intellectual disability.

Details:
Michelle and her little brother Ryan were stabbed to death by her father.

Case status:
Rab Thomson (Father), sentenced to 17 years to life in prison.

Source:
Mother tells of agony after disabled daughter, 25, and son, 7, are brutally murdered by ex-husband bent on revenge
Traumatised mum who endured terrible loss of two children fears being made homeless after cruel benefits blow
Criminologist reveals how killer Rab Thomson murdered his children in a bid to seek revenge against his wife
Handicapped woman and brother found murdered

Cheyenne Wolf

Photo of a teen girl with wavy strawberry-blond hair in a half-ponytail; she is smiling for the camera, wearing a pink shirt with black stripes.Name: Cheyenne Wolf.
Died: March or April 2008.
Age at death: 12.
Cause of death: Homicide.
Location: Durant, Oklahoma, USA.
Disability: Spina bifida.

Details:
Cheyenne’s stepmother tied her to a chair and beat her. When she died, her father helped hide the body.

Case status:
Denise Wolf (Stepmother); convicted of child abuse, child abuse by neglect, and unlawful removal of a dead body; sentenced to 5 consecutive life terms.
Able Wolf (Father), pleaded guilty to child abuse, child abuse by neglect, and unlawful removal of a dead body; sentenced to 3 concurrent life terms.

Source:
Sisters testify they saw Cheyenne Wolf abused before she died
Cheyenne Noell Wolf
Bryan County judge sentences stepmother for abuse, calls her ‘unfit for society’

Calista Springer

Portrait photo of a teenage girl with shoulder-length dark auburn hair and pale skin, smiling, wearing a pink polka-dotted turtleneck.Name: Calista Springer.
Died: February 27, 2008.
Age at death: 16.
Cause of death: Fire.
Location: Centreville, Michigan, USA.
Disability: Autism.

Details:
Calista’s parents tied her to her bed with zip ties and a dog collar, and when the house caught fire, her entire family left the house; none of them stopped to release her. She died in the fire.

Case status:
Anthony Springer (Father), child abuse and torture, 25-50 years.
Marsha Springer (Stepmother), child abuse and torture, 8-19 years.

Source:
Autism Memorial: Calista Springer
Calista Springer
Calista Springer: Adoption, abuse, neglect and murder
Calista Springer
Protective services workers can’t be sued in Calista Springer case, U.S. Court of Appeals affirms
Unforgotten Angels: Calista Springer

Courtney Wise

No PhotoName: Courtney Wise.
Died: February 18, 2008.
Age at death: 17.
Cause of death: Malnutrition.
Location: St. Catharines, Ontario, Canada.
Disability: Cerebral palsy.

Details:
Courtney’s mother neglected and starved her to death.

Case status:
Astrid Hueller (Mother), pled guilty to manslaughter, sentenced to 6 years in jail, minus double time served, for a total of five years.

Source:
Mother pleads guilty to manslaughter –
Mother gets six years for daughter’s death

Sarah-Jane Dore

Photo of Sarah-Jane Dore, a white woman with blonde hair. She is wearing glasses and a collared shirt.Name: Sarah-Jane Dore.
Died: February 14, 2008.
Age at death: 26.
Cause of death: Gunshot.
Location: Western Southland, New Zealand.
Disability: Intellectual disability.

Details:
Sarah-Jane’s father shot her, then killed himself.

Sarah-Jane was a powerlifter who competed in the 2007 Shanghai Special Olympics.

Case status:
Graeme Dore (Father), deceased.

Source:
Father, daughter shot dead
Find a Grave: Sarah-Jane Dore

Erianna Beltran

Photo of Erianna Beltran, a toddler girl.Name: Erianna Beltran.
Died: January 27, 2008.
Age at death: 3.
Cause of death: Blunt trauma.
Location: Fresno, California, USA.
Disability: Autism.

Details:
Erianna was admitted to the hospital, covered in bruises. She died two days later.

Case status:
Unsolved. Erianna’s mother, Erin Skinner, and her mother’s boyfriend, Mack Lucas, were both arrested because they were the ones in whose custody Erianna had been in; but charges were dropped because of a lack of evidence.

Source:
Autism Memorial: Erianna Beltran
Three-Year-Old Girl Died of Blunt Force Trauma
Charges Dismissed Against Accused Killer
Prosecutors drop charges in autistic girl’s death

Xiao Fei

Poor-quality black and white photo of Xiao Fei, a person sitting in a plastic chair with her head hanging to one side.Name: Xiao Fei.
Died: January 2008.
Age at death: 20.
Cause of death: Asphyxia.
Location: Beijing, China.
Disability: Cerebral palsy.

Details:
Xiao Fei’s mother drugged her with sleeping pills, then smothered her.

Case status:
Li Daohong (Mother), 3-year sentence suspended. No jail time.

Source:
“Mercy Killing” Mother Spared Jail

Maxwell Eyer

Portrait photo of Maxwell Eyer, a toddler sitting in front of a backdrop and holding a large number 1. He has olive skin, black hair, and is wearing a checked shirt and navy pants.Name: Maxwell Eyer.
Died: December 28, 2007.
Age at death: 2.
Cause of death: Head injury.
Location: Alton, Illinois, USA.
Disability: Deaf.

Details:
Maxwell’s father slammed his head against the floor repeatedly as a punishment for eating chips in bed; then his mother ignored his obvious brain injury and seizures and let him die.

Case status:
Johnny Garcia (Father), murder, 44 years.
Linsey Eyer (Mother), child endangerment, 5 years.

Source:
2 Year Old Deaf and Disabled Maxwell Eyer, Beaten to Death by his Father for Eating Chips in Bed

Sharon Birchwood

Photo of Sharon Birchwood, a woman with fair skin and straight, shoulder-length gray hair; she is wearing a black dress and smiling for the camera.Name: Sharon Birchwood.
Died: December 7, 2007.
Age at death: 52.
Cause of death: Strangled.
Location: Ashtead, England, UK.
Disability: Myalgic encephalomyelitis.

Details:
Sharon was tied up and strangled by a hit man hired by her husband. He had planned to claim her life insurance, sell her house, and flee the country.

Case status:
Graham Birchwood (husband), convicted of murder, sentenced to 29 years, died in prison.
Paul Cryne (Hitman), convicted of murder, sentenced to 28-and-a-half years, died in prison.

Source:
Man who ordered hitman to kill disabled ex-wife dies in prison
Documentary unravels Sharon Birchwood murder plot
Hunt on for killer of woman
Murder accused ‘calm and relaxed’ at death scene
Sharon Birchwood’s chilling message from the grave predicting her own murder
Sharon Birchwood’s brutal murder led police to Thailand in shocking kill plot