Remembering the Disabled Murdered by Caregivers
Parents, foster parents, stepparents, parents’ significant others.
Name: Kelsey Moore.
Died: December 13, 2009.
Age at death: 13.
Cause of death: Carbon monoxide poisoning.
Location: Madison County, Kentucky, USA.
Disability: Angelman syndrome.
Details:
Kelsey’s father shut her in their garage and poisoned Kelsey and himself with carbon monoxide.
Kelsey liked music. Her favorite instrument was the trumpet.
Case status:
Richard Moore (Father), deceased.
Name: Fabian Duque.
Died: November 9, 2009.
Age at death: 16.
Cause of death: Gunshot.
Location: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA.
Disability: Autism.
Details:
Fabian was shot by his father.
Case status:
Segundo Duque (Father), deceased.
Source:
Autism Memorial: Fabian Duque
Report on the Fatality of Fabian Duque, Jr.
Segundo Duque shot his 16 year old autistic son in the head
Dad shoots and kills 16-year-old disabled son
Two Deaths, One Gun: Father Kills Autistic Son
Name: Tony Khor.
Died: October 25, 2009.
Age at death: 15.
Cause of death: Asphyxia.
Location: Mississauga, Canada.
Disability: Autism.
Details:
Tony was strangled by his mother after an argument about whether to put him in residential care.
Case status:
Seow Cheng Sim (Mother); pled guilty to manslaughter; sentenced to 6-10 years. With credit for pre-trial custody, she served 2 more years before her release.
Source:
Autism Memorial: Tony Khor
Filicide: Boy with Autism Dead by Mother’s Hand
Mother charged with autistic son’s death
Mother Charged in Murder of Her Autistic Son
Name: Jeremy Bostick.
Died: September 27, 2009.
Age at death: 11.
Cause of death: Carbon monoxide poisoning.
Location: Edmonton, Alberta, Canada.
Disability: Autism.
Details:
Jeremy’s father gassed himself and his son with carbon monoxide.
Case status:
Jeffrey Bostick (Father), deceased.
Source:
Autism Memorial: Jeremy Bostick
Dad in murder-suicide had sought help for autistic son
Dad ‘snapped’ when autistic son sent to home, court told
Fatality inquiry into murder-suicide of father and autistic son reveals years-long struggle
Alberta has a tragic history of murder-suicides within families
Name: Charlotte Avenall.
Died: September 12, 2009.
Age at death: 8.
Cause of death: Hanging.
Location: Mansfield, Nottinghamshire, UK.
Disability: Cerebral palsy, intellectual disability.
Details:
Even though they took good care of their exotic pets, Charlotte’s parents neglected their daughter. Despite her disabilities and age requiring supervision, she was locked into a filthy room, completely alone; on the day she died, she had been left alone for fourteen hours. She had just learned to tie a knot in school when she hanged herself by the cord on the window blinds and died.
Case status:
Simon Moody (Father), pleaded guilty to child cruelty, sentenced to 12 months in prison.
Susan Moody (Mother), pleaded guilty to child cruelty, sentenced to 12 months in prison.
Source:
Hanged girl’s parents jailed for child cruelty
Charlotte Avenall’s ‘atrocious’ neglect shocked town
Police arrest parents of eight-year-old girl found hanged at home
Name: Asher Abdussalam Bashir.
Died: August 26, 2009.
Age at death: 4.
Cause of death: Drowning.
Location: Paradise Valley, Phoenix, Arizona, USA.
Disability: Cerebral palsy, autism.
Details:
Asher loved being in the water. Though he could not swim, he had no fear of drowning. Knowing this, his mother led him to their backyard pool and left him sitting next to it while she went into the house for twenty minutes. Asher got into the pool and drowned.
Case status:
Nadia Bashir (Mother), convicted of negligent homicide and child abuse; faces a maximum sentence of 4 years.
Source:
Autism Memorial: Asher Bashir
Woman found guilty in ’09 drowning death of son, 4
Jury Finds Nadia Bashir Guilty in Drowning Death of Her Four Year-Old Child
Asher Bashir
Nadia H. BASHIR, Petitioner, v. The Honorable Susanna C. PINEDA, Judge of the Superior Court of the State of Arizona, in and for the County of Maricopa, Respondent Judge, State of Arizona, Real Party in Interest.
Name: Camden Alexis Fry.
Died: August 9, 2009.
Age at death: 8.
Cause of death: Positional asphyxia.
Location: North Kingstown, Rhode Island, USA.
Disability: ADHD, anxiety.
Details:
Camden liked animals, nature, and art. She enjoyed swimming, hockey, and playing with her friends. She took art and cooking classes and liked to arrange her stuffed animals every night before bed.
When Camden struggled because she didn’t want a bath, her mother restrained her and eventually strangled her with pressure on her chest and hands on her neck and mouth.
Case status:
Kimberly Fry (Mother), convicted of second-degree murder, sentenced to 20 years in prison.
Source:
Mother asks court to throw out her conviction for killing daughter
Mom who killed child argues cops have done same to suspects
Rhode Island mother to serve 20 years in death of daughter, 8 – The Boston Globe
Camden Fry Obituary
Local child’s death stuns community
Therapist: Kimberly Fry Blamed Daughter For Depression; Felt Hopeless
UPDATE: Key Information Disclosed Two Years After Girl’s Death
Name: Peter Eitzen.
Died: July 26, 2009.
Age at death: 16.
Cause of death: Stabbed.
Location: Mount Barker, Australia.
Disability: Intellectual disabilty.
Details:
Peter was drugged and stabbed to death by his mother. She told the court that she had intended to kill them both with carbon monoxide in the car, but after she sedated her son, he woke up and struggled, so she stabbed him instead.
Case status:
Beverley Eitzen (Mother); ruled mentally unfit to stand trial due to depression, and released on mental health supervision.
Name: Giovanni Kopystenski.
Died: July 21, 2009.
Age at death: 5.
Cause of death: Gunshot.
Location: Las Vegas, Nevada, USA.
Disability: Autism.
Details:
Giovanni’s father says he left a loaded gun on the center console of the car while he and the boy were in the car, and that Giovanni took the gun and shot himself in the head.
Giovanni was playful and mischievous, a great swimmer who loved Thomas the Tank Engine and McDonald’s chicken nuggets.
Case status:
Alex Kopystenski (Father), pleaded guilty to child abuse and neglect with substantial bodily harm; sentenced to 5 years probation.
Source:
Autism Memorial: Giovanni Kopystenski
Mother in Shock After Death of Son
Boy’s father charged with endangerment after fatal shooting
Sentencing delayed for father who admits guilt in boy’s fatal shooting
Grandmother disputes police report that boy was shot with gun left on vehicle’s console
Giovanni’s Legacy Foundation
Name: Parion Williams.
Died: July 9, 2009.
Age at death: 16 months.
Cause of death: Malnutrition.
Location: Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA.
Disability: Cerebral palsy, congenital syphillis.
Details:
Parion was losing weight, and his doctor told his mother that he needed to see a specialist. Parion never saw the specialist, and died of starvation.
Case status:
Mandisa Z. Randolph (Mother), charged with child neglect.
Source:
Investigators tried to visit home of baby who later died
Woman failed to seek treatment for baby who died, complaint says