Relationship: Other Relative – Page 16 – Disability Day of Mourning

Angel Goodwin

Photo of a boy with tan skin and scruffy black hair, grinning at the camera. Name: Angel Goodwin.
Died: May 5, 2015.
Age at death: 10.
Cause of death: Drowning.
Location: Wheat Ridge, Colorado, USA.
Disability: Cerebral palsy; multiple disabilities.

Details:
Angel, who had severe disabilities, was abused by his grandmother and her boyfriends. Angel’s grandmother put him in a tub full of water and left him there for more than three hours. Unable to keep his head out of the water, Angel drowned.

Case status:
Onesia Najera (Grandmother), pleaded guilty to child abuse resulting in death, sentenced to 20 years in prison.

Source:
Wheat Ridge police investigating the death of a 10-year-old
Grandmother charged in death of 10-year-old in Wheat Ridge
Woman gets 20 years in prison for grandson’s drowning death
Grandmother sentenced in drowning death of boy with cerebral palsy
Jefferson County woman who drowned developmentally-disabled grandson sentenced to 20 years

Gary Blanton III

Photo of Gary Blanton III. He has fair skin and light brown hair. He is smiling for the camera. Name: Gary Blanton III.
Died: April 18, 2015.
Age at death: 5.
Cause of death: Fractured skull.
Location: Chattaroy, Washington, USA.
Disability: Developmental disability, possible autism.

Details:
Gary died from a fractured skull while in the custody of his aunt, who had custody of him after his parents died. Authorities discovered that his caseworker had been falsifying health-and-wellness visit reports.

Gary was a rambunctious child who ran up and down the hallways and even climbed into the washing machine.

Case status:
Cynthia Rose Khaleel (Aunt); charged with second-degree murder, acquitted.

Source:
Autism Memorial: Gary Blanton III
Jury acquits Chattaroy woman of killing 5-year-old nephew
Chattaroy woman arrested for five-year-old nephew’s death
Obituary
‘Everyone failed him’: Boy’s aunt accused of murder, DSHS accused of ‘critical errors’

Barbara Beam

No Photo Name: Barbara Anne Beam.
Died: January 2, 2015.
Age at death: 82.
Cause of death: Pulmonary embolism.
Location: Greeneville, South Carolina, USA.
Disability: Mobility impairment.

Details:
Barbara’s caregivers allegedly left her sitting in her chair for six months, without moving her or cleaning her. Finally Barbara died from a blood clot, caused by sitting still for so long, that lodged in her lungs. She also had a severe untreated kidney infection.

Case status:
Carole Howell (Sister), charged with abuse and neglect resulting in the death of a vulnerable adult.
David Howell (Nephew), charged with abuse and neglect resulting in the death of a vulnerable adult.

Source:
Greenville mother, son indicted 2 years after elderly woman found dead
Woman charged in death of her sister who sat in chair for 6 months, warrants say

Rosemary Vincent

Photo of Rosemary Vincent. She is a middle-aged woman with a round face, pale skin, and short curly red hair. She is wearing big white feathered earrings. Name: Rosemary Vincent.
Died: December 24, 2014.
Age at death: 58.
Cause of death: Pneumonia.
Location: McConnelsville, Ohio, USA.
Disability: Charcot-Marie-Tooth Disease.

Details:
Rosemary’s cousin, instead of caring for her or taking her to the doctor, stole her disability payments and neglected her. He would often tie her to a chair and put her in the closet. Weakened from lack of care, Rosemary was admitted to the hospital emaciated, with broken ribs and untended bedsores. She died of pneumonia.

Case status:
Jerry Campbell II (Cousin), pleaded guilty to theft from an elderly or disabled person, robbery, illegal use of food stamps, kidnapping, domestic violence, intimidation of a witness, and illegal manufacture of drugs; sentenced to 8 years.
Shannon Campbell (Cousin’s wife), pleaded guilty to neglect.
Linda Campbell (Jerry’s wife), charged with obstruction of justice/failure to report a crime, ruled incompetent to stand trial.

Source:
One pleads guilty in disabled person abuse case
Mother, son both remain in custody
Trial delayed in case involving Nelsonville woman’s death
Man accused of neglect in death of woman gets 8 years

Alex Robinson

Photo of a thin boy sitting on a park bench, his shoes off and his feet drawn up onto the bench. He is wearing a baseball cap and drinking from a bottle of juice. Name: Alex Robinson.
Died: December 23, 2014.
Age at death: 9.
Cause of death: Drowning.
Location: Lincoln, England, UK.
Disability: Autism.

Details:
Alex hated water, hated getting his face wet, and would only bathe while standing. His grandfather put him in the bathtub and held him underwater until he drowned.

Alex was fond of trains and wind turbines. He was particularly fascinated when his school visited a power plant, and asked such insightful questions that he amazed his teachers.

Case status:
Stewart Greene (Grandfather), convicted of murder, sentenced to 22 years in prison.

Source:
Mum shares poignant memories of murdered son Alex Robinson six years on
Autism Memorial: Alex Robinson
Alex Robinson murder trial: Grandfather drowned autistic grandson, 9, court told
“Vengeful” man drowns autistic grandson
Death of young boy murdered by grandfather ‘could not have been predicted or prevented’
Family hits out after review into murder of schoolboy by his granddad

Pendo Nundi

No Photo Name: Pendo Emmanuelle Nundi.
Died: Missing December 2014.
Age at death: 4.
Cause of death: Unknown (Missing).
Location: Mwanza, Tanzania.
Disability: Albinism.

Details:
Because Pendo was an albino, her body parts were considered valuable for ritual magic. With the alleged consent of her father and other relatives, she was kidnapped from her home. Her body has not been found, but she was almost certainly murdered, dismembered, and her body parts sold.

Case status:
Police arrested 15 people, including her father and two uncles.

Source:
Tanzania police offer reward for missing albino girl
Kidnapped Tanzanian albino boy found dead with limbs hacked off
Another Albino Child Is Murdered and Mutilated in Tanzania
Tanzania: Kidnapping of albino boy raises witchcraft fears – BBC News
1-Year-Old Albino Yohana Bahati Killed for Limbs in Tanzania
Mutilated Tanzanian albino baby body found: police

Patrick

No Photo Name: “Patrick” (Family name unknown).
Died: November 2014.
Age at death: 17.
Cause of death: Multiple organ failure.
Location: Bedford, England, UK.
Disability: Coffin-Lowry syndrome.

Details:
Patrick’s care was neglected by his grandmother. He was kept in a filthy room without a working light. By the time he was hospitalized, he weighed only 95 pounds, had bruises all over his body, and was in multiple organ failure. He died age 17.

Patrick was good at swimming and had just learned cycling. Despite his limited ability to speak, he had memorized all of his classmates’ names.

Case status:
His grandmother was interviewed for case review. Belford Borough Safeguarding Children Board concluded that the agency did not adequately support Patrick’s needs or ensure that his grandmother cared for him adequately.

Source:
Disabled teenager who died weighing just 6 stone was ‘invisible’ to social services
‘Neglected’ disabled Bedford teen ‘unsupported’ by social services before ‘shocking’ death
Tragic death of ‘invisible’ Bedford teen failed by system
Patrick Final Report for PUBLICATION 23.5.16

Noama Ware

Blurry photo of a white-haired old lady with pale, wrinkled skin, her mouth open as though she is about to speak. Name: Noama Ware.
Died: October 2014.
Age at death: 78.
Cause of death: Undetermined, in the setting of abuse and neglect.
Location: Shelley, Idaho, USA.
Disability: Frail elder, likely dementia/hoarding.

Details:
Noama’s husband and son both abused her. After an argument about her keeping her many cats in her bedroom, her son kicked her, injuring her severely; and then as she lay in bed, her grandson kicked her. They found her dead shortly thereafter.

Afraid that they would get in trouble because Noama was malnourished and abused, they buried her body in their duck pen, and her death went unnoticed for five years until her daughter died in a car accident and the police tried to find her to break the news.

Case status:
Harley Howell (Grandson), pleaded guilty to failure to report a death, sentenced to 3-10 years in prison.
Douglas Howell (Son), pleaded guilty to abuse and neglect of an elder, sentenced to 4 days in jail, $387.50 in fees, and 50 hours community service.

Source:
Local man sentenced to four days in jail for abuse and neglect of 78 year-old woman
Man admits to killing his grandmother and burying her in the backyard nearly 5 years ago
Shelley man sentenced after hiding grandmother’s death
Teen ‘killed bedridden grandma after row about her keeping 30 cats in her room’
Man admits to killing his grandmother and burying her in the backyard nearly 5 years ago

Bessie Looney

No Photo Name: Bessie Looney.
Died: September 29, 2014.
Age at death: 82.
Cause of death: Malnutrition, sepsis.
Location: Baton Rouge, USA.
Disability: Dementia, heart disease, wheelchair user.

Details:
Bessie’s daughter and granddaughter neglected her. She was left strapped into a wheelchair, denied her medication, and not brought to the doctor when she became very sick. She died of starvation and septic shock from untreated bedsores.

Case status:
Joleslie Looney (daughter), convicted of manslaughter, sentenced to 40 years.
Lauren Looney (granddaughter), pleaded guilty to negligent homicide, sentenced to 5 years in prison.

Source:
Louisiana high court upholds sentence in mom’s bedsore death
Woman pleads guilty to negligent homicide in 82-year-old grandmother’s death
Granddaughter pleads guilty to negligent homicide in 82-year-old woman’s gruesome 2014 death
Death of elderly Baton Rouge woman ruled a homicide
82-year-old found dead at home surrounded by flies, trash; two arrested
Doctors say woman facing charges was sane during the time of the death of her elderly mother
Baton Rouge woman declared sane when elderly mother died amidst deplorable conditions
Baton Rouge woman to be tried Aug. 28 in death of 82-year-old mother found in deplorable conditions
Daughter faces trial in death of bedsore-ridden mother, 82
Attorney for Baton Rouge woman accused of killing her mother doesn’t want her called ‘evil,’ ‘monster’ during trial
Elderly woman’s daughter told Baton Rouge police she wasn’t aware of severity of mother’s bedsores
‘A hard-working person that struggled,’ friends say of woman accused in elderly mother’s death
Daughter swiftly convicted of manslaughter in elderly mother’s 2014 bedsore-related death
Woman’s sentencing delayed in gruesome 2014 bedsore-related death of 82-year-old mother
Woman leaves grandmother in waste-covered wheelchair until bedsores kill her
Granddaughter sentenced in 82-year-old Baton Rouge woman’s bedsore-related death
Woman denied reduced sentence in death of elderly, malnourished mother
Judge won’t reduce Baton Rouge woman’s 40-year prison term in bedsore-related death of mother
Attorney says 40 years in bedsore-related death of 82-year-old woman is excessive punishment
Louisiana court upholds woman’s prison term for mom’s bedsore death
Court upholds woman’s prison term for mom’s bedsore death
Baton Rouge woman’s conduct ‘reprehensible’ in elderly mother’s bedsore death, appeals court says

Albert Franklin

No Photo Name: Albert Franklin.
Died: Sometime after July 28, 2014.
Age at death: 67.
Cause of death: Sepsis and malnutrition.
Location: Flint, Michigan, USA.
Disability: Dementia.

Details:
Albert had a feeding tube because of an obstruction in his throat, but his caregivers refused to use it, so Albert starved until he weighed only 52 pounds. He was hospitalized in July 2014, in septic shock from untreated bedsores, and died there.

Case status:
Alice Bitters (Girlfriend), ruled not competent to stand trial and institutionalized.
Melissa Bardoni (Girlfriend’s niece), pleaded no contest to second-degree murder, sentenced to 15-30 years.

Source:
Bardoni v. Howard, Case No. 20-11861 | Casetext Search + Citator
Woman pleads guilty to murder in elder abuse case
2 Flint women charged with abusing emaciated man
Caregivers arrested after emaciated man found with infected bed sores in Flint
Girlfriend, niece charged with elder abuse after police find 52 pound man
Woman Pleads Guilty In Flint Elder Abuse Case, Second Woman May Have Been Involved
Woman pleads guilty to murder in elder abuse case