Type: Fatal Abuse – Page 15 – Disability Day of Mourning

Ezra Miller

Name: Ezra Miller, also called Ezra Decker.
Died: February 3, 2016.
Age at death: 6.
Cause of death: Blunt-force trauma.
Location: Staunton, Virginia, USA.
Disability: ADHD, bed-wetting, speech impediment.

Details:
Ezra was beaten to death by his father because he had wet the bed.

Case status:
Steven T. Decker (Father), convicted of second-degree murder and child abuse, sentenced to 26 1/2 years in prison and 3 years probation.
Brianna Connolly (Father’s girlfriend), pleaded guilty to felony child neglect, given a suspended 10-year sentence and served 3 days in jail.

Source:
Staunton man sentenced for killing his child: Decker case
At murder trial, witness says Decker’s son’s injuries ‘didn’t fit with story’
Child-killer’s accomplice girlfriend gets 3 DAY jail sentence for 6-year-old’s beating death

Harmony Carsey

Name: Harmony Carsey.
Died: January 8, 2016.
Age at death: 2.
Cause of death: Brain hemorrhage.
Location: New Straitsville, Ohio, USA.
Disability: Undiagnosed mental illness or developmental disability (Head-banging; atypical behavior).

Details:
Crystal’s autopsy report stated that she died of a brain hemorrhage, and that she was underweight and dehydrated. Her mother denied abusing her, and said instead that Harmony had “mental health problems” and hurt herself by banging her head.

Case status:
Crystal Reed (mother), pleaded no contest to involuntary manslaughter, sentenced to 9 years.

Source:
Ohio Toddler’s Tragic Death Need Not Be in Vain if Ohio Courts Seize the Opportunity to Hold Reckless Child Protection Agency Accountable for its Role in the Child’s Abuse and Murder
Mom gets nine-year sentence for daughter’s death
Family seeks answers in 2-year-old’s death

Sophia Mahaffey

Photo of Sophia Mahaffey, a baby girl wearing a pink and gray checked dress and floppy pink hat. She is holding the hat on her head with one hand. Her wispy dark brown hair is short. She has fair skin. Name: Sophia Rose Mahaffey.
Died: January 5, 2016.
Age at death: 19 months.
Cause of death: Homicide.
Location: Cottonwood Heights, Utah, USA.
Disability: Cerebral palsy due to prematurity.

Details:
Sophia was allegedly beaten to death by her mother’s boyfriend.

Case status:
Jake Don Jensen (Mother’s boyfriend), charged with child abuse and child abuse homicide.

Source:
Cottonwood Heights man accused of abusing, killing wife’s infant daughter
Man charged in 2016 death of disabled 19-month-old girl – Story
Cottonwood Heights man charged with abusing and killing girlfriend’s daughter
Man Charged With Killing Disabled Toddler Before Marrying Her Mother
Utah man accused of abuse in 19-month-old girl’s death appears in court
Utah man, 29, is charged with killing girlfriend’s disabled daughter

Paul Roddy

Photo of Paul Roddy, a man with fair skin and dark-brown hair. He is wearing a suit and tie. Name: Paul Roddy.
Died: December 31, 2015.
Age at death: 55.
Cause of death: Pneumonia.
Location: Manchester, England, UK.
Disability: Multiple sclerosis.

Details:
The caregiver that Paul was living with did not care for him. Instead, the man beat him up and starved him while pocketing the government money he claimed as a caregiver to a disabled person. Paul died from abuse and neglect, his body severely malnourished; he had multiple broken bones.

Paul was a retired engineer and the father of four children.

Case status:
Christopher McAllister (“Friend”; Non-family, non-professional caregiver), convicted of manslaughter, sentenced to 10 years.

Source:
Unemployed thug beat seven stone Multiple Sclerosis sufferer to death
MS-sufferer beaten to death in own home by thug carer who left him malnourished
Violent carer who killed vulnerable MS sufferer is jailed
Man with MS died after carer physically abused him for months

Jermain Ngawhau

Name: Jermain Mason Ngawhau.
Died: December 18, 2015.
Age at death: 2.
Cause of death: Head injury.
Location: Clendon Park, Auckland, New Zealand.
Disability: Developmental delay.

Details:
Jermain’s grandmother was angry that he was having trouble walking; so she threw him down the hallway, causing a head injury that killed him. She then tried to blame his death on his four-year-old sister.

Case status:
Kathleen Elizabeth Cooper (Grandmother), convicted of murder, sentenced to 14-and-a-half years to life.

Source:
Grandma Accused Of Killing Grandson, Blaming It On His 4-Year-Old Sister
‘A very bleak picture’: High Court told of meth use in Auckland grandmother’s murder trial
Grandmother admits killing grandson but denies murder
Jermain Mason (Tiger) NGAWHAU’s Obituary
Murder-accused grandmother ‘never aggressive’, says dead boy’s mother
Grandma accused of murder was loved by grandson – mother
Cooper trial: Mother of dead toddler takes the stand
Jury begins deliberations in case of grandmother accused of murdering grandson
Grandma guilty of grandson’s murder
Grandmother Kathleen Cooper found guilty of murdering grandson
Kathleen Cooper murder case raises questions around whanau first principle
Life imprisonment for woman who killed grandson

Bruce Rangitutia

Name: Bruce Tau Rangitutia.
Died: December 8, 2015.
Age at death: 55.
Cause of death: Head injury, pneumonia, starvation.
Location: Tokoroa, North Island, New Zealand.
Disability: Cerebral palsy, intellectual disability.

Details:
When Bruce’s mother died, he went to live with his brother and sister-in-law, who abused and neglected him. He shrank to 45.7 kilos and was hospitalized after entering a coma. After being stabilized, he was supposed to go to a rehabilitation facility; but his brother and sister-in-law refused this once they realized they would no longer receive money for caring for him; so he went back to live with them. They went right back to neglecting him, including denying him his regular medication. Confined to bed because of malnutrition and unexplained injuries from blunt-force trauma that were likely caused by abuse, he was unable to get food for himself, and his caregivers ignored his cries for food and water. He died of a combination of head injury, pneumonia, bedsores, and starvation.

Case status:
Jovander Raymond Terry (Adoptive brother), pleaded guilty to ill treatment of a vulnerable adult, sentenced to 6 years 7 months.
Annie Mathews (Sister-in-law), pleaded guilty to ill treatment of a vulnerable adult and failing to seek medical care, sentenced to 4 years 10 1/2 months.

Source:
A Tokoroa couple have been jailed after starving a man with cerebral palsy to death – 23-Sep-2019 – NZ Law and Order news
Vulnerable man who drank own urine spends last hours ‘constantly moaning and calling for food and water’
Vulnerable man starved by carers died weighing 6st after begging for food
Tokoroa couple admit starving man with cerebral palsy before he died
View Bruce RANGITUTIA’s Notice on nzherald.co.nz and share memories

Payal Sawant

No Photo Name: Payal Sawant.
Died: November 30, 2015.
Age at death: 6.
Cause of death: Traumatic injury.
Location: Mumbai, Maharashtra, India.
Disability: Paraplegic, intellectually disabled.

Details:
Payal and her 8-year-old sister were tortured by their stepmother when their father was away at work. Payal’s stepmother tried to pass off her death as a natural one, but police saw the marks of abuse on her body. Payal may have died when she was strangled, or when she had her head slammed into a wall.

Case status:
Pratibha Sawant (Stepmother); convicted of torture and murder, sentenced to life in prison.

Source:
Bhandup woman held for torturing, killing stepdaughter
Mumbai: Stepmother booked for killing 6-year-old mentally unstable girl
Woman gets life for torture, murder of six-year-old stepdaughter

Adrian Jones

Photo of Adrian Jones, a small boy with dark hair in a buzz cut, light-brown skin, and dark eyes. His left eyelid droops slightly; his expression is neutral. He is wearing a red, gray, and and white T-shirt. Name: Adrian Jones.
Died: September or October 2015; body found November 26, 2015.
Age at death: 7.
Cause of death: Starvation.
Location: Kansas City, Kansas, USA.
Disability: “Special needs”; PTSD and reactive attachment disorder.

Details:
Adrian was confined to a bedroom, where he was beaten by his father and starved by his parents. When he died of starvation after having been confined to a shower for the last month of his life, his father fed his body to his pigs.

Case status:
Heather Jones (Stepmother), pleaded guilty to first-degree murder and child abuse, sentenced to 25 years to life.
Michael Jones (Father), pleaded guilty to child abuse, aggravated battery and aggravated assault, sentenced to 25 years to life.

Source:

Kansas will pay $1 million over the murder of torture victim whose body was fed to pigs
Prosecutor: Abuse charges just ‘tip of the iceberg’ in Michael Jones case
Stepmom enters plea in death of Kan. boy; remains found in pig pen
US stepmother pleads guilty to murder of boy fed to pigs
Kansas woman gets life term in 7-year-old stepson’s death
Life sentence expected for father who confessed to killing son, feeding body to pigs
Father to be sentenced after abusing, killing, feeding son to pigs
‘Daddy keeps hitting me’: Boy who was killed, fed to pigs told authorities about abuse
Father who tortured, killed 7-year-old Adrian Jones sentenced to life in prison
A life of torture: Kansas boy was starved, beaten for years until he died and parents fed him to pigs
Social worker knew 7-year-old was killed and fed to pigs was being tortured

Harold Grise

No Photo Name: Harold Grise.
Died: November 6, 2015.
Age at death: 68.
Cause of death: Trauma.
Location: Fish Lake, Michigan, USA.
Disability: Blind, mobility impaired.

Details:
Harold was badly beaten by his nephew, leaving him unresponsive with broken bones in his face and jaw. Instead of getting help for him, his sister left him on the floor for three days. He was only taken to the hospital once his son returned home and found him; but by then, it was too late to save his life.

Harold was a veteran of the US Air Force.

Case status:
Erik Minter (Nephew), pleaded guilty to battery and neglect of a dependent, sentenced to 22 years.
Georgia Arvidson (Sister), convicted of felony neglect of a dependent, sentenced to 2 years.

Source:
Man sentenced to 22 years beating uncle who later died
Elderly sister found guilty of neglect in Fish Lake brother’s death
Mother and son arrested for homicide
Harold I. Grise
Elderly sister found guilty of neglect in Fish Lake brother’s death

Sally Nelson

No Photo Name: Sally Nelson.
Died: November 1, 2015.
Age at death: 63.
Cause of death: Head injury.
Location: Connellsville, Pennsylvania, USA.
Disability: Elderly disabled.

Details:
Sally died of head injuries from a beating after suffering malnutrition and several other broken bones. Her daughter and her daughter’s boyfriend were charged with the crime.

Case status:
Peter Shoemaker Jr. (Daughter’s boyfriend), charged with criminal homicide, conspiracy, aggravated and simple assault and reckless endangerment. Currently incarcerated as of 11/1/2022, sentence unknown.
Lisa Nelson (Daughter), pleaded guilty to involuntary manslaughter, sentenced to 3-6 years.

Source:
Defense seeks dismissal, suppression in 2015 death trial
Woman pleads in mother’s death; ex-boyfriend awaits trial
‘You killed my grandma’: Statement evidence against couple charged in ‘severe elder abuse’ death
Couple charged in death of mother; elder abuse alleged