Relationship: Parent – Page 67 – Disability Day of Mourning

Zahra Baker

Photo of Zahra Baker, a girl with straight brown hair and freckles, smiling at something to the left of the viewer. Name: Zahra Baker.
Died: September 24, 2010.
Age at death: 10.
Cause of death: Homicide, undetermined.
Location: Hickory, North Carolina, USA.
Disability: Leg amputee, hearing impairment, cancer survivor.

Details:
Zahra was born in Wagga-Wagga, Australia, and at five years old she survived bone cancer, though her leg had to be amputated. When she was eight, her father married an American woman and moved to North Carolina.

In the nine months before Zahra was reported missing, multiple reports of abuse came in to child protective services. Her mother took her out of school to “home-school” her.

More than a month after she went missing, Zahra’s body was found. It could not be determined how she died, but her stepmother admitted to killing her.

Case status:
Elisa Baker (Stepmother); pled guilty to murder; sentenced to 18 years. Sentence extended for 10 years on drug charges.

Source:
Murder of Zahra Baker

Teyshawn Young

Photo of Teyshawn Young. He is a toddler with dark skin, wearing a red shirt and a blue hat. Name: Teyshawn Daryl Young.
Died: September 20, 2010.
Age at death: 3.
Cause of death: Blunt-force trauma.
Location: Toms River, New Jersey, USA.
Disability: Autism.

Details:
Teyshawn was beaten by his mother’s boyfriend; he died of blunt-force injuries to his stomach.

He liked dancing to his favorite TV shows and music.

Case status:
Corey C. Fitzgerald (Mother’s boyfriend), pleaded guilty to aggravated manslaughter, sentenced to 12 years.

Source:
Autism Memorial: Teyshawn Young
NJ man faces prison for death of autistic child
Questions surround child’s death in New Jersey
Teyshawn Daryl Young Obituary

Rohit Singh

No Photo Name: Rohit Singh.
Died: September 10, 2010.
Age at death: 7.
Cause of death: Fatal abuse.
Location: Bthinda, India.
Disability: Visual impairment and injured leg from previous abuse.

Details:
When he soiled his bed, Rohit’s father allegedly beat him to death with a hammer.

Case status:
Gurmeet Singh (Father), accused of murder.

Source:
Man kills disabled son for defecating on bed

Marchella Brett-Pierce

Photo of Marchella Brett-Pierce, a girl with brown skin, her brown hair in messy pigtails. Around her neck is a tracheotomy collar. Name: Marchella Brett-Pierce .
Died: September 2, 2010.
Age at death: 4.
Cause of death: drug poisoning, blunt impact injuries and malnutrition.
Location: Brooklyn, New York, USA.
Disability: Medically fragile due to prematurity.

Details:
Marchella died of neglect, starvation, and physical abuse by her mother and grandmother.

Case status:
Carlotta Brett-Pierce (Mother), convicted of murder, sentenced to 32 years to life.
Loretta Brett (Grandmother), convicted of manslaughter, 5-15 years.

Source:
A Bleak Life, Cut Short at 4, Harrowing From the Start
Marchella Brett-Pierce’s brother brought food to her funeral so she could eat in heaven
The Tragic Path to a 4-Year-Old’s Death
Carlotta Brett-Pierce Found Guilty of Murder in Battered Daughter’s Death
Carlotta Brett-Pierce Sentenced To Decades In Prison For Death Of Battered Daughter
The Death of Marchella Pierce: Collaboration, Conflict, and Accountability in Child Protective Services
MARCHELLA PIERCE TIED TO HER BED, BEATEN, DRUGGED AND STARVED, DIED AT AGE 4 WEIGHING 18 POUNDS

Tia McShane

Name: Tia McShane.
Died: August 30, 2010 (Body found); died sometime in 2006.
Age at death: About 7.
Cause of death: Unsolved.
Location: Pensacola, Florida, USA.
Disability: Cerebral palsy.

Details:
It is not known how Tia died. Her body was found, years later, hidden in a storage unit owned by her mother.

Case status:
Alicia McShane (Mother). Died before Tia’s body was found.

Source:
Remains Found In Storage Unit Identified

Esther Moraa

No Photo Name: Esther Moraa.
Died: August 2, 2010.
Age at death: 4 months.
Cause of death: Suffocated.
Location: Bokimweri, Nyamache District, Kenya.
Disability: Albinism.

Details:
Esther’s father convinced her mother to kill her because she had been born with albinism. Her mother suffocated her, then dumped her body in the river.

Case status:
Sara Kemunto Nyabuto (Mother), sentenced to one year in prison. Esther’s father fled and was not arrested.

Source:
Mother jailed for killing albino baby
Kenya : Woman kills albino child to avoid bad omen
Kenya : When mother finds it easy to kill her child
Woman kills albino child to avoid bad omen

Kenneth Holmes

Black and white side-profile photo of Kenneth Holmes, an African-American boy with his hair in cornrows. Name: Kenneth Holmes.
Died: July 28, 2010.
Age at death: 12.
Cause of death: Gunshot.
Location: New York, New York, USA.
Disability: Autism.

Details:
Kenneth was shot to death by his mother, who then committed suicide herself. Police said she was “frustrated over the demands of raising an autistic child”.

Case status:
Michaela Jackson (Mother), deceased.

Source:
Autism Memorial: Kenneth Holmes
JA mom kills autistic son, herself
Mom suspected in murder-suicide involving autistic son posted heart-wrenching blog item before death
It’s Mick’s World

Zain and Faryaal Akhter

No Photo Name: Zain Syed Akhter.
Died: July 19, 2010.
Age at death: 5.
Disability: Autism.

Name: Faryaal Rashid Akhter.
Died: July 20, 2010.
Age at death: 2.
Disability: Developmental delay; her mother thought she also had autism.

Cause of death: Strangled.
Location: Dallas, Texas, USA.

Details:
Zain and Faryaal’s mother tried to make them drink bathroom cleaner; when they wouldn’t do it, she strangled them.

Case status:
Saiqa Akhter (Mother), found not guilty by reason of insanity; hospitalized.

Source:
Autism Memorial: Zain and Faryaal Akhter
Dallas mom, Saiqa Akhter, killed her two children because they were autistic: 911 recording
Mother cites kids’ autism as motive for their slayings in call to 911 operator
Texas Mom Says She Killed Kids Because They Were Austistic

Grace Carlson

Indistinct photo of Grace Carlson, a heavyset teenage girl with dark-brown skin and a white ribbon in her hair. Name: Grace Carlson.
Died: July 17, 2010.
Age at death: 13.
Cause of death: Poisoning.
Location: South Lyon, Michigan, USA.
Disability: “Seriously disabled”; born addicted to crack.

Details:
Grace’s mother poisoned her in a murder-suicide.

Case status:
Donna Carlson (Adoptive mother), deceased.

Source:
Details emerge about South Lyon murder-suicide attempt; police seek charge of murder 1

Wendy Garland

No Photo Name: Wendy Garland.
Died: July 8, 2010.
Age at death: 33.
Cause of death: Pending autopsy.
Location: Jersey City, New Jersey, USA.
Disability: Down syndrome, cerebral palsy.

Details:
Wendy died when her family left her in a filthy room that, in midsummer, had heated up to 100 degrees. When they found her dead, they moved her out of her room, but when police saw where Wendy had been staying, they arrested her family. It was discovered that she had not seen a doctor in three years.

Case status:
Florence Garland (Mother), charged with neglect of an elderly or disabled person; died in 2017.
Helene Hutchinson (sister), charged with neglect of an elderly or disabled person.

Source:
Inspectors visit building where disabled Jersey City woman died
Family of disabled woman found dead in Jersey City appear in court
Disabled Woman Left in 100 Degree Room Dies; Mother, Sister Charged
Bed-ridden, disabled Jersey City woman found dead in 100-degree room, cops say; sister and mom charged
Death of disabled Jersey City woman who died in squalor requires more investigation: officials