Remembering the Disabled Murdered by Caregivers
Spouse or romantic partner.
Name: Carolyn Key.
Died: April 1, 2024.
Age at death: 57.
Cause of death: Shooting.
Location: Tallahassee, Florida, USA.
Disability: Kidney failure, chronic pain.
Details:
Carolyn’s husband allegedly shot her because he “wanted to end her pain.”
Case Status:
James Key (Husband), charged with homicide.
Sources:
‘I killed Carolyn’: Tallahassee man faces charges for allegedly shooting, killing wife
Carolyn Key Obituary
Name: Edward Cheng Kin-wong.
Died: March 27, 2024.
Age at death: 84.
Cause of death: Suffocation.
Location: Kowloon, Hong Kong, China.
Disability: Dementia, muscular dystrophy.
Details:
Mr. Cheng’s domestic help entered his bedroom to find him dead on his bed, and his wife hurt, apparently having tried to take her own life. Mr. Cheng had his nose and mouth covered with tape. Police suspect that his wife, worried about her ability to care for him, had smothered him.
Case Status:
Cheng Ying-lee (Wife), charged with murder.
Sources:
Hong Kong woman, 71, charged with murder after husband, 84, found dead in bed
Hong Kong woman, 71, charged with murder after dementia-suffering husband, 84, found dead in bed
Elderly woman charged with husband’s murder in Kowloon City tragedy to appear in court on 30th March
Elderly couple in grim murder-suicide case
April court date for woman charged with murder of husband, 84, in Hong Kong
Name: Olayode Morenike.
Died: March 27, 2024.
Age at death: Adult.
Cause of death: Stabbed.
Location: Akure, Ondo, Nigeria.
Disability: Unspecified.
Details:
Olayode was stabbed to death with a pair of scissors. Police say her husband was angry at her for visiting her child from a previous marriage.
Case Status:
Fatai Abdullahai (Husband), arrested on suspicion of murder.
Sources:
Police take action as husband stabs disabled wife to death in Ondo
Husband stabs wife to death in Ondo
Name: Janette Becraft.
Died: February 8, 2024.
Age at death: 85.
Cause of death: Gunshot.
Location: Portland, Oregon, USA.
Disability: Dementia.
Details:
Police responded to Janette’s home and, after a standoff with her husband, found her shot dead inside. They arrested her husband.
Janette took pleasure in owning and driving her 1968 Mustang. Spending time with the ladies from the Red Hat Society was a joy for her. She also loved to travel and play games; Scrabble was one of her favorites.
Case Status:
William Albert “Billy Jack” Haynes Jr. (Husband), charged with murder.
Sources:
Former WWE Wrestler Billy Jack Haynes Charged With Wife’s Murder
Former WWE Wrestler in Custody Over Wife’s Murder
Former WWF wrestler arrested in wife’s murder
Mercy Killings and CTE | WWF Star Billy Jack Haynes’ Alleged Murder Of His 85-Year-Old Wife With Dementia Leads To Deeper Questions
Former W.W.F. Wrestler Arrested in Wife’s Murder
Name: Gayatridevi Pandey.
Age at death: 40.
Disability: Epilepsy.
Name: Gauri Pandey.
Age at death: 11.
Disability: Mental illness.
Died: December 20, 2023.
Cause of death: Drowning.
Location: Valsad, Gujarat, India.
Details:
Gayatridevi’s husband allegedly pushed her and her daughter Gauri into the river, where they drowned. He jumped in himself, but was rescued after grabbing onto a bridge, and was charged with murder.
Case Status:
Vijay Pandey (Husband, Father), charged with murder.
Sources:
Gujarat : Mother-Daughter drowns in Waroli River in Sanjan
Gujarat Man Pushes Wife and Mentally-Ill Daughter into River, Resulting in Fatalities
Man kills wife, daughter by pushing them into river in Gujarat; tries to end life
Name: Maureen Potter.
Died: December 8, 2023.
Age at death: 80.
Cause of death: Unspecified homicide.
Location: Droitwich, Worcestershire, England, UK.
Disability: Cancer.
Details:
Maureen’s husband allegedly killed her and tried to kill their son, who also has a disability.
Case Status:
Ivan Potter (Husband), charged with murder and attempted murder.
Sources:
Pensioner, 81, being quizzed by police after woman, 80, found dead
Man, 81, arrested after woman, 80, ‘murdered’ with second man in hospital
Suspect aged 81 arrested on suspicion of murder after woman found dead
A town in shock – the latest on the Droitwich murder investigation
Man, 81, charged with attempted murder after police called to medical emergency
Maureen Potter (née Bourne)
Name: Aremean Mayo.
Age at death: 93.
Disability: Unspecified/Frail elder.
Name: Michael Willett.
Age at death: 69.
Disability: Wheelchair user, Stroke survivor
Died: November 25, 2023 (Bodies Found).
Cause of death: Stabbed.
Location: Denmark, Maine, USA.
Details:
Michael, his partner, and his partner’s grandmother Aremean shared a household, where Michael’s partner cared for them both. Another of Aremean’s grandchildren grew worried when she couldn’t contact them and their caregiver told her she was “tired of taking care of them both”; so she asked for a welfare check. When police knocked on her door, their caregiver told police that Aremean was in the hospital and Michael was in the woods, hunting. But Michael couldn’t have pushed his wheelchair through the woods, and police quickly determined that Aremean was not in the hospital; so they forced their way into the house, where they found that both of them had been stabbed to death.
Case Status:
Tzara Jones (Michael’s partner, Aremean’s granddaughter), charged with murder.
Sources:
Maine woman accused of killing her partner, elderly grandmother to be arraigned
‘Tired of taking care of them’: Maine caretaker accused of killing her partner, grandmother appears in court
‘Took me by surprise:’ Neighbors shocked as Denmark woman charged with killing 2 people in her care
Name: Charrie Lea Watkins.
Died: November 8, 2023.
Age at death: 70.
Cause of death: Strangled.
Location: Cheyenne, Wyoming, USA.
Disability: Alzheimer’s disease.
Details:
Charrie was strangled to death, allegedly by her longtime boyfriend.
Case Status:
Robert Edward Green II (Boyfriend), charged with second-degree murder and strangulation of a household member.
Sources:
Cheyenne man charged with killing girlfriend, who had Alzheimer’s
Cheyenne Man Accused of Strangling Woman to Death
Cheyenne Man Accused Of Killing Girlfriend Over $36,000
Name: Jean Ann Salter.
Died: October 8, 2023.
Age at death: 78.
Cause of death: Strangled.
Location: Mount Maunganui, North Island, New Zealand.
Disability: Dementia.
Details:
Jean’s dementia was progressing, and it had been suggested that Jean should be moved to a residential facility; her husband, upset that they might be separated, strangled her with a necktie. The killer claimed that there was a suicide pact, but there is no evidence of this save for his claim, and Jean, impaired by dementia, would not have been able to consent to an assisted suicide.
Case Status:
John Alfred Salter (Husband), pleaded guilty to murder.
Sources:
Wife’s last words as husband of 60 years strangled her with a tie
‘Smell of an oily rag’: Murder of wife with Alzheimer’s shows need for more dementia support
Name: Thérèse Brassard-Lévesque.
Died: September 30, 2023.
Age at death: 79.
Cause of death: Unspecified homicide.
Location: Terrebonne, Quebec, Canada.
Disability: Alzheimer’s disease.
Details:
Thérèse and her partner were found unconscious in her room at her senior living home. Thérèse was declared dead at the scene, but her partner was taken to the hospital, where his condition improved. Police believe that Thérèse’s partner killed her and then tried to kill himself, but survived the attempt.
Case Status:
Gilles Brassard (Partner), charged with first-degree murder.
Sources:
Police investigate homicide at Terrebonne, Que., seniors’ residence | CBC News
Man, 81, charged in wife’s murder at Quebec seniors’ home
Woman, 79, killed at Quebec seniors residence; suspect, 81, under watch in hospital