Age Categories – Page 68 – Disability Day of Mourning

Mary Terry

No Photo Name: Mary Kathleen Black Terry.
Died: September 21, 2018.
Age at death: 79.
Cause of death: Shooting.
Location: Catonsville, Maryland, USA.
Disability: Unspecified; recent injury requiring wheelchair use.

Details:
Mary and her husband were living in a retirement community when she was injured and had to start using a wheelchair. Mary’s husband fatally shot her, then killed himself.

Case status:
Clifford Wilson Terry (Husband), deceased.

Source:
Police ID Elderly Couple In Murder-Suicide In Retirement Community
Police name Clifford and Mary Terry as couple in murder-suicide at Catonsville retirement home
UPDATE: Couple identified after retirement community murder suicide
Baltimore County police investigating suspected murder-suicide in parking lot of Catonsville retirement community

Dante Mullinix

Name: Dante Mullinix.
Died: September 15, 2018.
Age at death: 2.
Cause of death: Head injury, strangulation.
Location: Hershey, Pennsylvania, USA.
Disability: Developmental disability, nonverbal, autism.

Details:
Dante was a happy baby. He had a developmental delay, and had difficulty chewing and swallowing. He could say a few words, like “ew” and “yeah”. He was being evaluated for autism.

His aunt called him “Monkey Man” because he had a favorite blanket with a monkey on it which he carried everywhere. Before he went to sleep, he rubbed his face against his blanket.

Dante’s mother left him with her friend; shortly thereafter, Dante was brought to the hospital, unresponsive, with bruises, a compressed neck, and a brain injury, and died a few days later. The babysitter was charged with murder, but acquitted; Dante’s mother, who admitted to not seeking medical care for him, was sentenced to 5 years probation.

Case status:
Leah Mullinix (Mother), pleaded guilty to child endangerment, sentenced to 5 years probation.
Tyree Bowie (Mother’s friend), charged with first- and third-degree murder; acquitted.

Source:
Mother won’t serve jail time for neglecting Dante Mullinix before his death
Autism Memorial: Dante Mullinix
Police charge aunt for sharing documents about abused nephew’s death: ‘I’m exposing the truth’
‘This poor kid was doomed from the beginning:’ The tragic life and death of Dante Mullinix

Mark Randolph

Name: Mark Randolph.
Died: September 15, 2018.
Age at death: 50.
Cause of death: Blunt neck trauma.
Location: Gloucester, New Jersey, USA.
Disability: Unspecified; disabled in a car accident.

Details:
Mark Randolph’s family knew something was wrong when one day he didn’t send them his usual good-morning text message. When they checked on him, they found him dead. He had died from blunt trauma to the head and neck, allegedly inflicted by his own brother.

He worked as a cook before his car accident. He appointed himself as “the neighborhood’s dad”, buying ice cream for the neighbors from the ice cream truck and playing catch with the children. His family remembers him as charitable and friendly.

Case status:
Shawn Randolph (Brother), charged with murder.

Source:
Man charged with killing brother who ‘would do anything for him,’ family said
Man charged with killing brother claims self defense in text messages
Man charged with brother’s murder in Camden County

Warren Raymond Jr.

Name: Warren Lee Raymond Jr.
Died: September 13, 2018.
Age at death: 30.
Cause of death: Head trauma.
Location: Catawba County, North Carolina, USA.
Disability: Autism.

Details:
Warren’s father bludgeoned him to death with a sledgehammer and beat and stabbed Warren’s mother to death.

Case Status:
Warren Lee Raymond Sr. (Father), pleaded guilty to two counts of second-degree murder, sentenced to 40-50 years.

Source:
Dad Pummels Autistic Son With Sledgehammer, Stabs Wife To Death
Warren Lee Raymond, JR. Obituary – Visitation & Funeral Information
Autism Memorial: Warren Raymond Jr.
With a sledgehammer, the father pummels his autistic son, stabbing his wife to death.
Catawba man likely to die in prison after convicted of killing wife, son
Catawba County Man Pleads Guilty To Murdering Wife, Son, Receives Lengthy Prison Term
Catawba County man who killed wife and son sentenced
64-year-old man sentenced to 40-50 years in prison for killing wife, son with autism in Catawba Co.

Jalen Goldsborough

Photo of a boy lying in bed, covered with a blanket. He has dark-brown eyes, brown skin, and dark hair. His hands are balled into fists. Name: Jalen Goldsborough.
Died: September 2, 2018.
Age at death: 13.
Cause of death: Malnutrition.
Location: Hopewell, Virginia, USA.
Disability: Shaken baby syndrome; required 24-hour care.

Details:
Jalen was abused by his father when he was a baby. He survived and his father went to prison, but Jalen was left with severe disabilities.

At 13, Jalen was found starved to death, his mother having been deliberately reducing his food intake for several months.

Case status:
Amy FaJohn (Mother), pleaded no contest to second-degree murder, sentenced to 20 years in prison.
Anthony Saunders (Mother’s boyfriend), pleaded guilty to child neglect, sentenced to 5 years in prison.

Source:
Woman sentenced for son’s starvation death
Starved teen weighed 24 lbs at time of death, mother pleads no contest to murder
Mother Pleads Guilty in Starvation Death of Son with Severe Disability
Hopewell mother convicted of murder in starvation death of son, 13, who weighed 24 pounds when he died
Virginia mother convicted over starvation death of 13-year-old son
Medical Examiner: Murdered Hopewell teen with special needs starved to death
2 charged in death of Hopewell 13-year-old
Murdered Hopewell teen was victim of severe abuse as infant
Mother charged with murder in death of severely disabled 13-year-old

Bonnie Hanks

Photo of a middle-aged woman with dyed red hair, wearing a black tank top and a gold cross necklace. Her skin is freckled, and she wears sunglasses. Name: Bonnie Hanks.
Died: August 28, 2018.
Age at death: 52.
Cause of death: Multiple injuries from a beating.
Location: Fort Pierce, Florida, USA.
Disability: Multiple sclerosis.

Details:
Bonnie was beaten to death by her boyfriend. He explained the bruises on her body by claiming that she fell down a lot because she had multiple sclerosis.

Bonnie cared about her appearance and never left home without first fixing her hair and doing her make-up. She liked having coffee with friends.

Case status:
Jeffrey Yankowski (Boyfriend), convicted of first-degree murder; automatic life without parole.

Source:
St. Lucie County jury convicts Jeffrey Yankowsi in 2018 beating death of girlfriend Bonnie Hanks
Bonnie Hanks, beaten to death in St. Lucie County, was a ‘good soul’

Abel Leveque-Flett

Name: Abel Joseph Leveque-Flett.
Died: August 23, 2018.
Age at death: 3.
Cause of death: Undetermined; after severe abuse.
Location: Little Grand Rapids, Manitoba, Canada.
Disability: Epilepsy, developmental disability, mobility impairment.

Details:
Abel was dead on arrival to a nursing station. He had seven broken bones, severe bruising, and burns. An autopsy was inconclusive because it could not be determined whether he had died from his disability or from the abuse he had endured, but his caregivers were both convicted of “failing to provide the necessaries of life”.

Case Status:
Houston Bushie (Temporary guardian), pleaded guilty to failing to provide the necessaries of life, sentenced to 3 years.
Alayna Flett (Family member, temporary guardian), pleaded guilty to failing to provide the necessaries of life.

Sources:
Guardian sentenced to 3 years for death of toddler who had ‘profoundly disturbing’ injuries
Mar 2021: First Nation demands justice in boy’s death
Manitoba’s families minister calls for review of boy’s death after caregivers charged
Temporary guardians charged in connection with death of 3-year-old in Little Grand Rapids, Man.

Ronald Blankenship

No Photo Name: Ronald Blankenship.
Died: August 20, 2018.
Age at death: 64.
Cause of death: Bronchopneumonia.
Location: Monticello, Illinois, USA.
Disability: Unspecified; diabetes, mobility impaired.

Details:
Ronald lived with his sister and nephew, who were supposed to care for him. He died of severe, untreated bronchopneumonia and was found in filthy surroundings.

When Ronald was found dead, police also found a young woman with Down syndrome, who had been adopted by one of Ronald’s relatives; she was taken into adult protective services. Three dogs and three cats, also neglected, were taken by animal control; two of the dogs, Cocker Spaniels named Chance and Puddy, were too sick to survive and had to be euthanized.

Case status:
Christie Brown (Sister), convicted of criminal abuse or neglect of a disabled person and aggravated cruelty to a companion animal.
Mason Brown (Nephew), convicted of criminal abuse or neglect of an elderly person, sentenced to 5 years in prison and 1 year on parole.
Justin Tatman (Power of Attorney), charged with criminal neglect, charges dropped.

Source:
Neglect charges on one defendant dropped
Monticello man found guilty of neglect after death of uncle
Bond set for three in neglect case | Piatt County Journal-Republican
3 arrested in connection with death of Monticello man

Mason Jordan

Name: Mason Jordan.
Died: August 20, 2018.
Age at death: 7.
Cause of death: Gunshot.
Location: Bend, Oregon, USA.
Disability: Cerebral palsy, hydrocephalus.

Details:
Mason’s mother shot him to death.

Mason liked reading, watercolor painting, music, and playing with toy cars. He was curious about everything. Despite medical problems that put him in the hospital on a regular basis, friends and neighbors remember him as a very happy child.

Case status:
Tashina Aleine Jordan (Mother); charged with aggravated murder, pleaded guilty to murder, conviction reduced to first-degree manslaughter; sentenced to 10 years in prison and 20 years in the Oregon State Hospital.

Source:
Oregon mother pleads guilty to killing son with disabilities
DA won’t seek death penalty in Bend mother’s murder case
Police: Bend mother kills special needs son, 7, before attempting suicide
2016-17
Single mother shoots her severely disabled 7-year-old son to death and attempts to kill herself by overdosing on pills
Correction: Disabled Child Shot story
Mother Accused Of Killing 7-Year-Old Disabled Son Before Attempting Suicide
Mother believed to have killed son expected to recover
Bend mother arraigned on aggravated murder charge in son’s shooting
Bend woman arraigned in alleged killing of son, 7
Mother indicted for murder in shooting death of son with severe disability
Bend woman charged with killing disabled son back in court

Christopher Pratt

Name: Christopher Pratt.
Died: August 17, 2018.
Age at death: 6.
Cause of death: Head injury, malnutrition.
Location: Lansing, Michigan, USA.
Disability: Chromosome 10 disease, autism, epilepsy.

Details:
Christopher died from a head injury, having lost nearly half his body weight while in the care of his aunt.

Christopher lost his mother when he was five years old. Before he went to stay with his aunt, Christopher was a happy boy who used to greet his cousin by grabbing her face to show affection.

Case Status:
Jessica Bice (Aunt), convicted of second-degree murder and first-degree child abuse, sentenced to 33 years.

Sources:
‘Christopher felt safe here’: New bench memorializes Lansing area boy who died in 2018
Aunt sentenced to prison for death of Lansing boy with special-needs
Woman responsible for death of autistic 6-year-old sentenced
Lansing woman found guilty of homicide in death of boy with special needs
Lansing woman convicted of murder, child abuse in death of 6-year-old nephew
Lansing woman convicted of murder in death of 6-year-old nephew with special needs
Jurors weigh fate of aunt charged with murder, child abuse in 6-year-old’s death
Autism Memorial: Christopher Pratt
Trial begins for aunt in 2018 death of disabled, ’emaciated’ Lansing boy
Testimony continues in child abuse, murder case
Family wants justice following death of young boy
Aunt charged with murder, child abuse in death of a Lansing 6-year-old
Family of the woman accused of killing her 6-year-old nephew speaks out
Family demands justice for Lansing boy who was killed