Remembering the Disabled Murdered by Caregivers
Parents, foster parents, stepparents, parents’ significant others.
Name: Mark Lee Dowell.
Died: January 27, 1992.
Age at death: 35.
Cause of death: Drug overdose.
Location: San Diego, California, USA.
Disability: Intellectual disability.
Details:
Mark’s mother allegedly poisoned him with a drug overdose.
Case status:
Josephine Dowell (Mother), status unknown.
Source:
(Untitled newspaper article)
Mark Lee Dowell: Find A Grave
Name: James Nazar.
Died: January 23, 1992.
Age at death: 44-45.
Cause of death: Gunshot.
Location: Flin Flon, Manitoba, Canada.
Disability: Quadriplegic.
Details:
James was shot to death by his father in a murder-suicide.
Case status:
John Nazar (Father), deceased.
Source:
People with Disabilities Outraged by Murders
Remembering…
In Memory
Find a Grave: John Nazar
Name: Carrie Day.
Died: January 9, 1992.
Age at death: 22.
Cause of death: Pneumonia.
Location: Ironwood, Michigan, USA.
Disability: Intellectual disability.
Details:
Carrie’s mother starved her, often punishing her by forcing her to watch the family eat while Carrie went hungry. She died of pneumonia, her 65-pound body unable to fight the infection.
Case status:
Urselyne Day (Adoptive mother), charged with involuntary manslaughter. Died Jan. 17, 2014 in a nursing home, of pneumonia; outcome of case unknown.
Source:
Woman accused of starving mentally retarded daughter to death
Name: Brandon Lamarr Sims.
Died: 1992 (Body never found).
Age at death: 4.
Cause of death: Missing, presumed dead.
Location: Indianapolis, Indiana, USA.
Disability: Gonadotropin-independent precocious puberty.
Details:
Brandon was beaten to death by his mother, who said she “did not want to raise a freak”.
Case status:
Michelle Jones (Mother), convicted of murder, sentenced to 50 years; released after 20 years.
Source:
We Need to Forgive the College-Bound Mother Who Killed Her Child
From Prison to Ph.D.: The Redemption and Rejection of Michelle Jones
Michelle Jones v. State
Name: Noah Simpson.
Died: December 10, 1991.
Age at death: 2.
Cause of death: Suffocation.
Location: Eastlake, Ohio, USA.
Disability: Cerebral palsy.
Details:
Noah’s mother suffocated him by placing him face-down on a waterbed.
Case status:
Elayna Simpson (Mother); convicted of murder, sentenced to 15 years to life.
Source:
State of Ohio vs. Elayna Simpson. Court of Appeals of Ohio, Eleventh Appellate District, Lake County. 30 Sept. 1994. LexisNexus. Web. 30 May 2015.
Name: Dianna Lam Phan.
Died: November 4, 1991.
Age at death: 4.
Cause of death: Gunshot.
Location: Los Angeles, California, USA.
Disability: “Born brain-damaged”; visually impaired.
Details:
Dianna was shot by her mother in a murder-suicide.
Case status:
Stacy Phuong Phan (Mother), deceased.
Source:
Girl Died of Gunshot Before Being Hit by Car
Lam Phan (1987-1991) – Find A Grave Memorial
Name: Susan Shea.
Died: October 26, 1991.
Age at death: 19.
Cause of death: Gunshot.
Location: Lincoln Park, New Jersey, USA.
Disability: Autism.
Details:
Susan and her mother, Eileen Shea, were allegedly shot by Susan’s father.
Case status:
Michael Edward Shea (Father); charged with first-degree murder.
Source:
Autism Memorial: Susan Shea
Man Held in Killings in His Home
Name: Jeni Cazares, also called Yeni Lezama, Jenny, or Yeni Cazares.
Died: May 19, 1991.
Age at death: 3 months.
Cause of death: Head injury.
Location: Santa Ana, California, USA.
Disability: Down syndrome.
Details:
Jeny’s mother smashed her head; then her parents both helped hide her body.
Case status:
Oscar Lezama, pleaded guilty to voluntary manslaughter, sentenced to 11 years.
Rocio Cazares (Mother), pleaded guilty to being an accessory, sentenced to 5 years probation.
Source:
Mother Charged With Murdering Infant Daughter in Her Apartment
Name: Unknown; last name may be Lev.
Died: February 22, 1991.
Age at death: 16.
Cause of death: Poisoning.
Location: Jerusalem, Israel.
Disability: Autism.
Details:
This teenage boy’s mother was found guilty of poisoning him.
Case status:
Zvia Lev (Mother), found guilty of murder.
Source:
Autism Memorial: 16-year-old male, Name Unknown
Michael Rotem, “Mother found guilty of killing her autistic son,” Jerusalem Post, February 22, 1991.
Name: Julie Kirisits.
Died: October 21, 1990.
Age at death: 23.
Cause of death: Homicidal violence.
Location: Tonawanda, New York, USA.
Disability: Intellectual disability.
Details:
Julie was beaten, strangled, and stabbed to death by her mother.
Case status:
Patricia Kirisits (Mother); pleaded not responsible due to insanity. Four years later she was “legally discharged from supervision”.
Source:
Court Discharges Mother in Child’s Killing
MOTHER FACING MURDER CHARGE WAIVES HEARING