Remembering the Disabled Murdered by Caregivers
Name: Laurel Doreen Bentley-Bearham.
Died: July 25, 2018.
Age at death: 91.
Cause of death: Gunshot.
Location: Terra Linda, San Rafael, California, USA.
Disability: Dementia, frail elder.
Details:
Laurel was shot by her husband in a murder-suicide.
Case status:
James Leonard Bearham (Husband), deceased.
Source:
Marin coroner IDs couple in murder-suicide
San Rafael police probe murder-suicide shooting in Terra Linda
Name: Comfort Jay Thompson-Pene.
Died: July 24, 2018.
Age at death: 18 months.
Cause of death: Blunt head trauma.
Location: Tirau, North Island, New Zealand.
Disability: Birth defect.
Details:
Comfort died from head trauma after long-term child abuse and neglect.
She had spent her first few months of her life in the hospital.
Case Status:
Southern Thompson (Mother), convicted of murder, child abuse, injury with intent, and failing to seek medical care; sentenced to 17 years to life.
Sources:
Named: Woman who abused, neglected and bashed her child to death
Mum who abused, neglected then murdered her own daughter can now be named
Southern Thompson Name Suppression Lift A Reminder Of NZ’s Atrocious Child Abuse Statistics
Name: Samantha Fraser.
Died: July 23, 2018.
Age at death: 38.
Cause of death: Asphyxia.
Location: Phillip Island, Australia.
Disability: Depression.
Details:
Samantha was found hanging in her garage with bruises on her body. Her estranged husband, on trial for murder, admitted to beating Samantha, but claimed he left her alive, and that she must have died from suicide due to her depression. The murder happened just weeks before he was due to go to trial for repeatedly raping her.
Case Status:
Adrian Basham (Estranged husband), convicted of murder, sentenced to life.
Sources:
‘Justice for Sam’: Life sentence for Phillip Island ex-wife killer Adrian Basham
Grandparents left to raise murdered daughter’s children ask for help
Adrian Basham found guilty of murdering wife Samantha Fraser
Estranged husband allegedly murdered wife and made it look like a suicide, court hears
Accused Man Admits To Bashing Samantha Fraser
Name: Barbara Lewis-Brown.
Died: July 22, 2018.
Age at death: 77.
Cause of death: Malnutrition, sepsis.
Location: Baton Rouge, Louisiana, USA.
Disability: Disabled elder.
Details:
Instead of caring for her, Barbara’s children and grandchildren left her on the couch. There, she slowly died from a combination of malnutrition, dehydration, and stage 4 pressure sores infected by her filthy environment, having been starved down to a skeletal 108 pounds on her 5’8″ frame.
Barbara was retired from the Louisiana Department of Labor, having worked there for more than thirty years. Her co-workers remember her teaching them their jobs when they were new. She was the “life of the party,” good at encouraging others and brightening their day. She had three children, thirteen grandchildren, and nine great-grandchildren.
Case status:
Chasity Lewis (Granddaughter), pleaded guilty to manslaughter and cruelty to the infirm, sentenced to 3 years 6 months to 10 years.
Carlnessa Butler (Granddaughter), pleaded no contest to negligent homicide, sentenced to 5 years.
Carl Lewis (son), charged with manslaughter and cruelty to the infirm; charges dismissed.
Chira Lewis (daughter), charged with manslaughter and cruelty to the infirm; charges dismissed.
Source:
Granddaughter pleads guilty in elderly Baton Rouge woman’s bedsore death; charges for 2 others dropped
2nd family member convicted in malnourished grandmother’s death
New details in Baton Rouge woman’s tragic bedsore death shed light on elderly neglect
Barbara Lewis-Brown’s Obituary on The Advocate
Pair faces manslaughter charge in death of elderly woman
In Memory of Barbara Lewis-Brown — Wilson-Wooddale Funeral Home, Baton Rouge
Third family member arrested after woman dies of bedsores in Baton Rouge
Name: Wendy Jane Henson.
Died: July 19, 2018.
Age at death: 74.
Cause of death: Head injury.
Location: Hillsboro, Oregon, USA.
Disability: Unspecified.
Details:
Wendy’s son killed her by hitting her in the head with a baseball bat; then he called emergency services and spent fifteen minutes complaining about her and refusing to help her.
Wendy was a published author who wrote plays and novellas. She taught college screenwriting classes and wrote a textbook on the subject. In her later years, she wrote a movie review column under the title “Now Playing”.
Case Status:
Garth Patrick Beans (Son), convicted of second-degree murder, sentenced to 25 years to life.
Sources:
Man convicted of murder after he ‘clobbered his mama’
Washington County man sentenced to life in prison for killing mother in 2018
Oregon Man Who ‘Clobbered His Mama’ with Baseball Bat and Complained About Her for 15 Minutes in 911 Call Is Sentenced to Prison
Name: Dawn Liebig.
Died: July 19, 2018.
Age at death: 46.
Cause of death: Stabbed, bludgeoned.
Location: Pahrump, Nevada, USA.
Disability: Multiple disabilities, including cancer.
Details:
As she slept in her bed, Dawn was stabbed and bludgeoned to death by her sons. Not knowing it was her sons who were attacking her, Dawn called out to them for help as she died.
They buried her body, but were arrested for murder when someone called the police and asked for a welfare check. Her sons initially claimed she had asked them to help her commit suicide, but they kept changing their story and were charged with murder.
Dawn had twenty cats which she cared for. They were healthy and well-fed in a photo taken while she was alive, but were left alone with her killers before her body was found. When the police came for the welfare check, they found that all the cats had survived, though some of them were malnourished.
Case status:
Michael Wilson (Son), sentenced to 10 years to life for murder and 8-20 years for use of a deadly weapon.
Dakota Saldivar (Son), convicted of second-degree murder and use of a deadly weapon, sentenced to 18 years to life.
Source:
Man sentenced for killing his mother
Scary Details About Why Two Teens Murdered Their Disabled Mother With A Hammer
Sheriff: Teens admit to killing mom because ‘they couldn’t take her complaining’
Police: Mom Cries Out to Sons for Help Not Knowing They Were the Ones Smashing Her Skull
Nevada Teens Fatally Bludgeoned Mom To Stop Her ‘Complaining,’ Police Say
Tired of her ‘parenting style,’ teens kill mom in brutal 30-minute attack, Nevada cops say
Pahrump teens arrested on suspicion of fatally beating mother
Dawn Liebig Nevada mom murdered by Michael Wilson and Dakota Saldivar cause she complained too much.
Michael Wilson & Dakota Saldivar: 5 Fast Facts You Need to Know
Name: Elsie Mae Greene.
Died: July 17, 2018.
Age at death: 65.
Cause of death: Sepsis; bedsores.
Location: Cumberland Furnace, Tennessee, USA.
Disability: Parkinson’s disease.
Details:
Elsie’s brother and his wife left her on a thin mattress, in filthy conditions with no air-conditioning in the hot Tennessee summer. She developed bedsores and eventually died from sepsis.
Case Status:
William “Bill” Norris Greene (Brother), convicted of negligent homicide, given 8-year suspended sentence.
Deadra Tidwell Greene, convicted of negligent homicide, given 8-year suspended sentence.
Sources:
Couple convicted of negligent homicide in death of bed-ridden sister
Couple sentenced to probation in death of medically disabled woman left on floor mattress
Name: Carolyn “JC” Campbell.
Died: July 11, 2018.
Age at death: 52.
Cause of death: Hypoxic brain injury.
Location: Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
Disability: COPD.
Details:
Emergency services received a call from Carolyn’s house, but the caller hung up, so police was dispatched to check on her. The police say that when they arrived, they found Carolyn unresponsive and saw her husband quickly switching her oxygen machine on; when they asked why it had been turned off, her husband told them that he had turned it off. Her brain irreversibly damaged from oxygen deprivation, Carolyn died in the hospital.
Case Status:
Josiph Cardle (Common-law husband), charged with murder; acquitted because it could not be proven that turning Carolyn’s oxygen off was the cause of her death.
Source:
Toronto man not guilty of murder in sudden death of chronically ill partner
Carolyn “JC” CAMPBELL: obituary and death notice on InMemoriam
Murder trial begins for Toronto man accused of killing his wife by turning off oxygen machine
Name: Jacob Edwards.
Died: July 10, 2018.
Age at death: 6.
Cause of death: Gunshot.
Location: Prices Corner, Delaware, USA.
Disability: Williams Syndrome.
Details:
Jacob was shot by his father during a murder-suicide in which his father killed Jacob’s entire family. Also dead are Julie Edwards, Jacob’s mother, his little sister Brinley and his little brother Paxton.
Jacob liked music and dancing.
Case status:
Matthew Edwards (Father), deceased.
Source:
Dad Shot Wife, 3 Kids and Then Himself in Del. Home, PD Says
Deaths of Delaware family of 5 ruled murder-suicide
Police: Man killed wife, 3 children, then himself in Prices Corner
Deaths of Delaware family of 5 ruled murder-suicide
Family killed in alleged murder-suicide: ‘I never thought this would happen’
Mom killed in murder suicide was key member of national Williams syndrome nonprofit
Murder Victim Pleaded with Husband to Get Therapy Before He Killed Her and Their 3 Kids
Name: Patricia Franks.
Died: July 8, 2018.
Age at death: 86.
Cause of death: Bludgeoned.
Location: Gatley, Stockport, Greater Manchester, England, UK.
Disability: Dementia.
Details:
Patricia’s husband beat her to death with a metal bar so that he wouldn’t have to put her in a care home. He had previously turned down offers of support from social services.
Case status:
Lawrence Franks (Husband), pleaded guilty to manslaughter due to diminished responsibility, given a two-year suspended sentence.
Source:
84-year-old man pleads guilty to manslaughter of his 86-year-old wife
Stockport man, 84, killed wife with dementia as ‘act of mercy’
Elderly man beat dementia-stricken wife to death in ‘mercy killing’
Devoted husband, 84, who battered wife, 86, to death with an iron bar rather than see her go into care home weeps as judge frees him
Devoted husband’s determination to keep his promise to his wife ended in tragedy
‘I’VE KILLED MY WIFE’ Pensioner’s tragic 999 call after killing dementia-stricken wife