Type: Homicide – Page 53 – Disability Day of Mourning

Jhalandia Butler

Photo of Jhalandia Butler, a young woman with long dark-brown hair and tan skin, wearing a red tank top. Name: Jhalandia Elaine Butler.
Died: March 5, 2017.
Age at death: 28.
Cause of death: Stab wounds.
Location: Crofton, Maryland, USA.
Disability: PTSD, bipolar disorder (claimed by killer).

Details:
Jhalandia’s boyfriend was abusive and had already been charged with assault once for choking and punching her. He murdered Jhalandia by stabbing her to death.

Jhalandia was a US Army veteran who had served for six years and two tours of duty in Iraq. She had met her boyfriend while they were both being treated for PTSD at a military hospital.

Case status:
Ryan Hollebon (Boyfriend), pleaded guilty to first-degree murder, sentenced to life without parole.

Source:
Iraq war veteran gets life in prison for Crofton murder of girlfriend
Jhalandia Elaine Butler, 28
Crofton veteran who pleaded to killing girlfriend appeals life sentence

Nicholas Dean

Photo of Nicholas Dean, a boy with dark hair and light-brown skin, sitting in a wheelchair in front of an electric keyboard. He is wearing glasses and a striped shirt. Name: Nicholas Dean.
Died: March 1, 2017.
Age at death: 31.
Cause of death: Asphyxia.
Location: Bakersfield, California, USA.
Disability: Cerebral palsy.

Details:
Nicholas was drugged, then strangled to death while he was home alone with his adoptive sister and her boyfriend.

He is the second homicide victim in his family. His older brother Jonathan was murdered by their adoptive father in 2014.

Case status:
Nicholas’s death has been ruled a homicide.
Jessica Dean (Adoptive sister), under investigation; possible suspect or witness.
Michael Hernandez (Sister’s boyfriend), under investigation; possible suspect or witness.

Source:
Homicide of disabled man still under review by DA’s office, nearly two years later
Death of disabled man investigated as homicide
Man who took plea deal in alleged murder-for-hire of adopted son has been released from prison
Eyewitness News tip line prompts murder investigation
Homicide claims second brother in troubled adoptive family
The death of a disabled man is being investigated as a homicide
Charges refiled against defendant in Jonathan Dean murder
Homicide of disabled man still under review by DA’s office, nearly two years later

Jeffrey Franklin

Name: Jeffrey “JR” Franklin.
Died: March 1, 2017.
Age at death: 16.
Cause of death: Homicide.
Location: Guilford, New York, USA.
Disability: Deaf; autism; developmental delay; mobility impaired.

Details:
Jeffrey had been adopted when he was about nine or ten years old.

Jeffrey’s adoptive parents killed him because he was “becoming too much to handle”. Then they burned down their trailer to try to hide the evidence.

Jeffrey liked watching 3D movies. He liked cartoons and as a child he had worn the mustache from his Mario Halloween costume to school for a month. He liked trains and had a toy train set.

Case status:
Heather Franklin (Adoptive mother), pleaded guilty to first-degree manslaughter, third-degree arson and tampering with physical evidence, sentenced to 7-11 years.
Ernest Franklin (Adoptive father), convicted of second-degree murder, third-degree arson and tampering with physical evidence, sentenced to 21 years to life.

Moti Sahu

No Photo Name: Moti Sahu.
Died: February 23, 2017.
Age at death: 43.
Cause of death: Head injury.
Location: Jaipur, Rajasthan, India.
Disability: Unspecified.

Details:
Moti’s brother beat him with a wooden log, then smashed his head into a wall, killing him in front of a “huge mob” of witnesses. Afterward, he calmly smoked a cigarette with his foot on his brother’s body.

Case status:
Ram Prasad Sahu (Brother), convicted of murder, sentenced to death; this was his second murder, as he had already served 14 years for killing a sadhu (holy man).

Source:
Jaipur Man Awarded Death Sentence for Killing Disabled Younger Brother
Man gets death for killing disabled bro
Rajasthan court rules death sentence to the man for brutally killing brother

Avis Addison

Name: Avis “Mary” Addison.
Died: February 22, 2017.
Age at death: 88.
Cause of death: Asphyxia.
Location: St. Merryn, England, UK.
Disability: Dementia.

Details:
Avis, called Mary, was allegedly beaten and strangled by her husband, who, as her dementia worsened, refused help in caring for her and instead neglected and abused her.

Mary was a churchgoer who attended her village’s coffee mornings.

Case status:
Douglas Addison (Husband), charged with murder, declared guilty, ruled insane; hospitalized indefinitely.

Source:
89-year-old retired policeman murdered wife because he couldn’t cope with her dementia
Number of missed opportunities to help woman murdered by her husband
Apologies over ‘missed opportunities’ to help pensioner murdered by husband
Douglas Addison has been charged with the murder of his wife in quiet Cornish village of St Merryn
Man, 88, charged with murder of his 88-year-old wife
Pensioner murdered wife because of her Alzheimer’s, jury told
Sympathy for family of Alzheimer’s sufferer killed by husband with dementia
Retired policeman, 89, found guilty of murdering wife
Former police officer found guilty and sentenced for murder of wife in Cornwall
Retired policeman, 89, suffocated dementia-sufferer wife
Devoted husband battered and suffocated wife to death in truly tragic case

Walter Clark

Name: Walter Mack Clark.
Died: February 17, 2017.
Age at death: 63.
Cause of death: Multiple blunt force trauma.
Location: Washington DC, USA.
Disability: Diabetes, partial amputation of foot, chronic illness.

Details:
Walter was beaten to death by his girlfriend with a baseball bat.

He was a retired cook.

Case status:
Thomasine Bennett (Girlfriend), pled guilty to voluntary manslaughter, sentenced to 10 years.

Source:
District Woman Sentenced to 10 Years in Prison For Fatally Beating Man at Her Apartment
Woman, 76, Who Beat Boyfriend, 63, to Death With Bat Was Tired of Loving Him, Police Say
Woman, 76, Beat Boyfriend, 63, to Death With Bat: Police
67-year-old woman charged with murder told police she beat man with baseball bat
67-Year-Old Woman Beat Boyfriend to Death with a Bat for 36 Hours, Police Allege

Erwin Drake

No Photo Name: Erwin Emerson Drake.
Died: February 12, 2017.
Age at death: 93.
Cause of death: Gunshot.
Location: Florence, Oregon, USA.
Disability: Blindness, dementia, mobility impairment.

Details:
Erwin was shot by his ex-wife, who first claimed that he had threatened her, then claimed it had been a mercy-killing because of his dementia.

Case status:
Carolyn Stickley (Ex-wife), pleaded guilty to first-degree manslaughter, sentenced to ten years in prison.

Source:
Ex-wife claimed self-defense, then mercy killing after shooting 93-year-old Florence man, court records show
Florence woman charged in killing of 93-year-old ex-husband
Quail Creek woman held in Oregon murder
Woman, 74, admits killing 93-year-old ex-husband in Florence
Sahuarita woman sentenced in husband’s death

Robert Jones

No Photo Name: Robert Jones.
Died: February 8, 2017.
Age at death: 61.
Cause of death: Traumatic injury.
Location: Bridgeport, Connecticut, USA.
Disability: Fetal alcohol syndrome.

Details:
Robert was found beaten to death, propped up in his recliner with a cigarette in his hand. Police arrested his nice and her husband, who had been his caregivers, and charged them with murder. They proved his niece had beaten him to death, then tried to pose his body so that it looked like a natural death.

Case status:
Tynisha Hall (Niece), pleaded guilty to manslaughter, sentenced to 20 years, suspended after serving 15 years.
Brent Whiteman (Niece’s husband), convicted of manslaughter, sentenced to 7 years.

Source:
Bridgeport caregiver sentenced to 15 years in beating death of disabled uncle
Woman Pleads Guilty In Beating Death Of Trumbull Man: Report
CNA accused of killing uncle then propping him up with a cigarette
Caregiver’s murder case continued
Bridgeport Cops: Caretaker arrested in disabled man’s death
Bridgeport woman accused of killing disabled uncle she was caring for
Bridgeport woman accused of killing uncle appears in court
Bridgeport Police: Niece Killed Uncle, Then Propped Up Body With Cigarette
Woman charged with murder in death of uncle in Bridgeport
Conn. Woman Suspected in Uncle’s Murder: Police
PD: Man arrested in connection to February 2017 murder

Tina Billingham

Name: Tina Billingham.
Died: February 6, 2017.
Age at death: 54.
Cause of death: Stabbed.
Location: Rowley Regis, England, UK.
Disability: Depression.

Details:
After a long abusive relationship, Tina’s partner stabbed her through the heart with a sword. During the trial he tried to claim she had done it to herself because of her depression.

She was a friendly woman, the mother of two, who liked to have friends and neighbors over for coffee.

Case status:
Ronald Cooke (Partner), convicted of murder, sentenced to 24 years to life.

Source:
‘Murdered’ Sandwell mother could have killed herself, court told
Funeral Fund For Tina Billingham
‘Our sadness is overwhelming’: Family’s tribute to murdered Tina Billingham
Murder accused: She killed herself after I called her bluff
Murderer Ronald Cooke’s violent and bullying past revealed
Man jailed for life after stabbing partner to death in row

Erin Leinweber

Portrait photo of Erin Leinweber, a young woman with long light-brown hair, fair skin, and brown eyes. She is wearing a blouse and is smiling with her lips shut. Name: Erin Leinweber.
Died: February 4, 2017.
Age at death: 58.
Cause of death: Beaten, stabbed, suffocated.
Location: Wheaton, Illinois, USA.
Disability: Multiple sclerosis, lupus, brain aneurysm.

Details:
Erin was recently divorced from her husband, who had a history of abusing her. Her husband returned to her home and killed her by stabbing and suffocating her.

Case status:
Lee Leinweber (ex-husband), pleaded guilty to first-degree murder, sentenced to 50 years.

Source:
Man pleads guilty, gets 50 years for killing ex-wife in Wheaton
Ex-husband charged with murder in death of Wheaton woman: officials