Age Categories – Page 41 – Disability Day of Mourning

Cameron Gordon

Photo of a small fair-skinned boy with short blond hair, smiling for the camera, wearing plastic-rimmed glasses and a flannel shirt over a white T-shirt. Name: Cameron Joseph Gordon.
Died: September 6, 2020.
Age at death: 3.
Cause of death: Head trauma.
Location: Duluth, Minnesota, USA.
Disability: Autism.

Details:
Cameron’s mother went to work, leaving him with her fiancé. When she returned, she found him unresponsive and rushed him to the hospital, where he was diagnosed with a brain injury, a broken rib, and extensive bruising. Cameron died two days later from his injuries.

Case Status:
Jordan William Carter (Mother’s fiancé), convicted of second-degree murder, sentenced to 15 years.

Sources:
‘Cameron will forever be 3’: Duluth man sentenced to 15 years for boy’s murder
Duluth man found guilty of second-degree murder in 2020 death of then-fiancee’s 3-year-old
Trial begins for Duluth man charged in toddler’s murder
Medical examiner rebuked for delay in Duluth murder trial
Trial in Lakeside boy’s death pushed back to 2023
Duluth Man Charged With Second-Degree Murder in Death of 3-Year-Old
Child advocates speak out after death of Duluth 3-year-old
Trial Involving The Death Of Three Year Old Duluth Boy Delayed By Defense Team Until 2023
Medical evidence awaited in Duluth child death
Autism Memorial: Cameron Gordon

Nancy Arnold

No Photo Name: Nancy Arnold.
Died: September 5, 2020.
Age at death: 78.
Cause of death: Gunshot.
Location: Scottsdale, Arizona, USA.
Disability: Unspecified; wheelchair user.

Details:
Police say that Nancy’s brother fatally shot her, then tried to kill himself. Her brother recovered from his injuries and was arrested, but Nancy died at the scene.

Case status:
William Lokay (Brother), charged with first-degree murder; died in 2022.

Source:
PD: 73-year-old Valley man accused of shooting, killing sister
Obituary: William A. Lokey

Fat-lun Wong

No Photo Name: Fat-lun Wong.
Died: September 5, 2020.
Age at death: 21.
Cause of death: Suffocation.
Location: Hong Kong, China.
Disability: Intellectual disability.

Details:
Investigators believe that Fat-lun’s mother strangled him with a plastic tablecloth.

Fat-lun was a student at Tsui Tsin Tong School, a residential care home for children with intellectual disabilities. At age 21, he had just grown too old to stay there.

Case status:
Xueping Chen (Mother), pleaded guilty to manslaughter; sentenced to 1 year, to be served in a psychiatric hospital to treat her depression.

Source:
Hong Kong mother sent to psychiatric ward for killing mentally disabled son
Hong Kong police arrest mother after son dies in suspected murder-suicide bid
Mom held at hospital over death of handicapped son
Mother charged over handicapped son’s death

Yoko Shinya

No Photo Name: Yoko Shinya.
Died: September 4, 2020.
Age at death: 76.
Cause of death: Suffocation.
Location: Saitama, Japan.
Disability: A chronic diease.

Details:
Ms. Shinya’s son allegedly strangled her as she lay in her hospital bed. Hospital staff reported that they saw him trying to kill her and intervened, but she had been badly hurt and died hours later. Police say her son told them he “couldn’t bear watching” and wanted to “make her comfortable”.

Case status:
Akira Shinya (Son), arrested on suspicion of attempted murder.

Source:
Man arrested over murder of ailing mother in hospital
Saitama: Man, 50, strangles ill mother in hospital

Emrik Osuna

Name: Emrik Osuna.
Died: September 2, 2020.
Age at death: 9.
Cause of death: Untreated pneumonia worsened by starvation and repeated injury.
Location: Meridian, Idaho, USA.
Disability: ADHD.

Details:
When Emrik’s father and stepmother called 911 to report that Emrik was unconscious, medics found him dead on the floor of his house with bruises covering his body. He had died of pneumonia, which he was unable to fight because he was very malnourished. Police recovered nanny cams from the house, which showed the boy being beaten and forced to do exhausting exercises for long periods of time.

Emrik loved Transformers, ninjas, and dinosaurs.

Case Status:
Monique Osuna (Stepmother), convicted of first-degree murder, sentenced to life without parole.
Erik Osuna (Father), charged with first-degree murder.

Source:
Idaho stepmom gets life sentence for killing 9-year-old boy
Nanny cameras captured abuse of Meridian boy at center of murder case
Emrik Osuna Obituary – Santa Ana, CA
Emrik Osuna: Idaho boy, 9, starved and tortured to death by stepmom, weighed 44 lbs and had trauma to penis
Boy, 9, tortured to death with parents ‘wrapping band around his genitals’

Shanthi

No Photo Name: Shanthi.
Died: September 2, 2020.
Age at death: 48.
Cause of death: Poisoning.
Location: Pudukkottai, Tamil Nadu, India.
Disability: Intellectual disability.

Details:
Shanthi’s father allegedly poisoned her and himself. Neighbors heard Shanthi screaming and rushed her to the hospital, but it was too late and she died. Police said he was worried about providing for her.

Case status:
Chellaiya (Father), deceased. Ruled murder-suicide.

Source:
Pudukkottai man poisons intellectually disabled daughter, kills himself later

Abhijit Rajak

No Photo Name: Abhijit Rajak.
Died: September 1, 2020.
Age at death: 30.
Cause of death: Head trauma.
Location: Kolkata, West Bengal, India.
Disability: Intellectual disability.

Details:
Abhijeet’s uncle and sister-in-law allegedly murdered him by beating him to death with a shovel. Police say they tried to make it look like someone had robbed the family and killed Abhijeet by throwing two of the family’s bicycles into a pond; but some days later, a neighbor hooked a bicycle on their fishhook and revealed the fraud.

Case status:
Chandan Rajak (Uncle), charged with murder, voluntarily causing hurt for robbery, and conspiracy to commit a crime.
Priyanka Rajak (Sister-in-law), charged with murder, voluntarily causing hurt for robbery, and conspiracy to commit a crime.

Source:
Murder arrests from within family
Kin held for murder of 30-year-old in Kolkata’s Topsia

Donna Harber

Name: Donna Joann Harber.
Died: September 1, 2020.
Age at death: 81.
Cause of death: Gunshot.
Location: Bell, California, USA.
Disability: Dementia.

Details:
Donna was found shot to death; her husband was charged with her murder.

Case status:
Danny Harber (Husband), charged with murder.

Source:
Ex-Bell City Council member arrested for wife’s killing
Former Bell city councilman arrested in shooting death of his 81-year-old wife
Former Bell City Councilman Danny Harber Arrested In Wife’s Murder

Leslie Hartman

Name: Leslie Lynn Hartman.
Died: August 26, 2020.
Age at death: 46.
Cause of death: Gunshot.
Location: Denton, Texas, USA.
Disability: Paralysis, wheelchair user.

Details:
Leslie’s boyfriend, a sheriff’s deputy, shot her, then claimed she had shot herself. Instant messages show that they were arguing about him shooting a milk bottle in the backyard. Later messages include a picture of him holding a pistol and a message that refers to him shooting her. He also wiped his phone before police could take it into evidence.

Leslie made stained glass and jewelry and was excited about getting a new puppy. She was a nature-lover who cared about the environment, and in her last text she wrote about how gorgeous the rain was.

Case status:
Jay Allen Rotter (Boyfriend), convicted of murder, sentenced to 30 years.

Source:
Ex-Sheriff’s Deputy Convicted of Fatally Shooting Wheelchair-Bound Girlfriend, after He Claimed It Was Suicide
Former Deputy Claimed Death of Girlfriend Who Used Wheelchair Was Suicide. Now He’s Convicted of Murder
Tx. Cop Claimed His Girlfriend Killed Herself, But Police Say He Killed Her, Bragged About It Online
Tarrant County deputy hid texts prior to arrest in his girlfriend’s murder, police say
Texas sheriff’s deputy accused of murdering girlfriend
Deputy who said girlfriend shot herself charged with her murder
Texas deputy fatally shot girlfriend, then claimed it was suicide, cops say
Texas sheriff’s deputy accused of murdering wheelchair-bound girlfriend, claiming it was suicide

Dylan Freeman

Name: Dylan Freeman.
Died: August 16, 2020.
Age at death: 10.
Cause of death: Suffocation.
Location: Acton, west London, England, UK.
Disability: Cohen syndrome, autism.

Details:
Dylan’s mother admitted to drugging him, then suffocating him.

Dylan’s father says, “Dylan was a beautiful, bright, inquisitive and artistic child who loved to travel, visit art galleries and swim.” He often took his son on vacation overseas.

Case status:
Olga Freeman (Mother), pleaded guilty to manslaughter on grounds of diminished responsibility; detained indefinitely at a psychiatric hospital.

Source:
UK woman who killed disabled son detained in hospital indefinitely
Mum who suffocated disabled son during lockdown given hospital order
Wife of celeb photographer who suffocated disabled son, 10, given hospital order
Mother is given indefinite hospital order after she suffocated son
Mum who suffocated disabled son, 10, in lockdown given indefinite hospital order
Lockdown Contributed to Death of Disabled Boy: UK Judge
Mother admits killing disabled son, 10, while struggling to care for him in lockdown
Celebrity photographer’s autistic son was ‘suffocated with a sponge’
Celebrity photographer’s autistic son, 10, suffocated with sponge as mother ‘struggled’ to take care of him
Celeb photographer’s ex gave autistic son, 10, sleeping drug before ‘putting sponge in his mouth and tying it’
Woman in her 40s is arrested for murder after boy, 10, was found dead at house in west London
Celebrity photographer’s ex-wife charged with murder of 10yo son in London
Mother charged with murdering her autistic son, 10, is pictured arriving at court
Celeb snapper ‘can’t comprehend’ loss of son, 10, as mum charged with murder
Mum charged with murdering son, 10, she shared with celebrity photographer