Remembering the Disabled Murdered by Caregivers
Homicide followed by completed suicide.
Name: Betty Lou Erickson.
Died: March 24, 2009.
Age at death: 81.
Cause of death: Gunshot.
Location: Hudson, Wisconsin, USA.
Disability: Alzheimer’s disease.
Details:
Betty’s husband shot her in a murder-suicide.
Case status:
Claire Erickson (Husband), deceased.
Source:
Desperate act from a weary caregiver
More details released in Erickson deaths
Name: Terrell Stepney.
Died: February 27, 2009.
Age at death: 19.
Cause of death: Prescription medication overdose.
Location: Chesapeake, Virginia, USA.
Disability: Autism.
Details:
Terrell’s grandmother poisoned him and herself with an overdose of prescription medication.
Terrell looked forward to going shopping on school field trips with his special education class.
Case status:
Constance Stepney (Grandmother), deceased.
Source:
Autism Memorial: Terrell Stepney
Student killed by grandmother liked gym, field trips
Name: Kyle Dutter.
Died: November 18, 2008.
Age at death: 12.
Cause of death: Gunshot.
Location: Middleton, Wisconsin, USA.
Disability: Autism.
Details:
Kyle was shot by his father in a murder-suicide.
His favorite holiday was Halloween. He loved dressing up and going trick-or-treating, and was always talking about Halloween to anyone who would listen.
Case status:
Ryan Dutter (Father), deceased.
Source:
Autism Memorial: Kyle Dutter
NEW DETAILS: Murder-Suicide
Kyle Thomas Dutter, Beloit (1996 – 2008)
Suicide notes left behind by Middleton father who shot his son and himself
Name: Eileen Martin.
Died: November 10, 2008.
Age at death: 76.
Cause of death: Head injury.
Location: Davyhulme, Greater Manchester, England, UK.
Disability: Vascular dementia.
Details:
Eileen’s husband killed her by hitting her in the head before committing suicide.
Case status:
Ken Martin (Husband), deceased.
Source:
Shock over tragedy of ‘devoted couple’
Families REJECT claims a mystery serial killer slaughtered their elderly relatives and insist it was murder-suicide
Elderly husband killed dementia-suffering wife and himself ‘so she didn’t become a burden on family’
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
Name: Francecca “Frankie” Hardwick.
Died: October 23, 2007.
Age at death: 18.
Cause of death: Fire.
Location: Earl Shilton, Leicestershire, England, UK.
Disability: Intellectual disability.
Details:
Francecca’s mother locked herself and Francecca into their car and set it on fire. 18-year-old Frankie burned to death.
Francecca’s schoolteachers remember how she loved to jump in puddles, play on swings, and give massages.
Case status:
Fiona Pilkington (Mother), deceased.
Source:
Bullies ‘drove mother and daughter to fireball death’
Francecca Hardwick: portrait of a victim
A Pilkington Malaise? Have We Really Learnt the Lessons for 2020?
Name: Sarah Grupstein.
Died: September 19, 2007.
Age at death: 84.
Cause of death: Gunshot.
Location: Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
Disability: Stroke, mobility impaired (Wheelchair user), diabetes, heart disease.
Details:
Sarah was shot by her son in a murder-suicide.
Case status:
Percy Stein (Son), deceased.
Source:
History of euthanasia in Canada
Sarah Grupstein’s Obituary on National Post
Cancer-stricken man commits murder-suicide
`We weep for their pain,’ rabbi says at murder-suicide funeral
Murder or mercy?
Name: Daniel Christopher Benoit.
Died: June 25, 2007.
Age at death: 7.
Cause of death: Suffocated.
Location: Fayetteville, Georgia, USA.
Disability: Fragile X (Disputed).
Details:
Daniel’s father suffocated him in a murder-suicide. He also killed Daniel’s mother, Nancy.
Daniel might not have had Fragile X; a family member reported that he did not, but the media widely reported Daniel’s Fragile X as having been the stressor that drove his father to kill him.
Case status:
Chris Benoit (Father), deceased.
Source:
Christopher Michael BENOIT
Chris Benoit double-murder and suicide – Wikipedia
The tragic family secret Benoit kept from the world
Attorney: Couple argued over care of mentally retarded 7-year-old son
Sandra Toffoloni talks about her sister’s murder at the hands of Chris Benoit
SON’S DISABILITY SUGGESTED AS FACTOR IN BENOIT MURDER-SUICIDE
Chris Benoit Conspiracy Theories Debunked: What Really Happened?
Name: Lorna McCadden.
Died: August 29, 2006.
Age at death: 80.
Cause of death: Gunshot.
Location: Penticton, British Columbia, Canada.
Disability: Alzheimer’s disease.
Details:
Lorna’s husband went to the hospital where she was staying and shot her and then himself in a murder-suicide.
Case status:
John McCadden (Husband), deceased.
Source:
History of euthanasia in Canada
Murder/Suicide Update
Elderly Murder-Suicides Indicate Desperation, not Compassion
Elderly couple shot to death at B.C. hospital
Such an ugly unnecessary way to die: Two old, failing lovers might choose to end it all rather than to live apart
Slaying of wife seen as act of compassion
Name: William Lash IV.
Died: July 14, 2006.
Age at death: 12.
Cause of death: Gunshot.
Location: McLean, Virginia, USA.
Disability: Autism.
Details:
William’s father killed his son before committing suicide.
William was an active child who was fond of ice-skating, roller-skating, and basketball.
Case status:
William Lash III (Father), deceased.
Source:
William Lash tragedy: Ex-Commerce Dept. official kills son, self
Ex-Bush Aide Fatally Shoots Son, Himself
Two Tearful Goodbyes
Autism Memorial: William Lash IV