Location: Canada – Disability Day of Mourning

Thérèse Brassard-Lévesque

No Photo 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), pleaded guilty to second-degree murder, sentenced to 10 1/2 years to life.

Sources:
Quebec man, 81, gets prison sentence after admitting to killing wife with Alzheimer’s disease
“I’m not an assassin” says Quebec man who killed his wife suffering from dementia
Police investigate homicide at Terrebonne, Que., seniors’ residence
Man, 81, charged in wife’s murder at Quebec seniors’ home
Woman, 79, killed at Quebec seniors residence; suspect, 81, under watch in hospital

Cheryl Mansoff

Name: Cheryl Lee Mansoff.
Died: September 2, 2023.
Age at death: 63.
Cause of death: Beaten.
Location: Brandon, Manitoba, Canada.
Disability: Leg amputee, diabetes.

Details:
Cheryl lived with a man who helped her by doing errands and yardwork. When police were called to their home, they found her dead; she had been violently assaulted.

Cheryl was an avid reader. She leaves behind three children and three grandchildren.

Case Status:
Stephen Teetaert (Caregiver, tenant), charged with second-degree murder.

Sources:
Neighbours, uncle talk about homicide
Obituary of Cheryl Lee Mansoff | Brockie Donovan Funeral & Cremation Services

Richard Rutherford

Name: Richard Judson Rutherford.
Died: April 15, 2022.
Age at death: 87.
Cause of death: Unspecified homicide.
Location: Ottawa, Ontario, Canada.
Disability: Mobility impaired, cognitive decline.

Details:
Richard died the victim of homicide; his husband was arrested and charged with his murder, which is being called a “mercy killing”.

Richard was a former principal dancer in the Royal Winnipeg Ballet who worked with the Canada Council for the Arts after he retired as a dancer. In his elder years, he tended his garden and watched the birds and chipmunks that came to his feeder.

Case Status:
Philippe Hébert (Husband), charged with second-degree murder.

Sources:
The ‘tragic and profoundly human’ story of Richard Rutherford and Philippe Hébert
Bail granted to Ottawa man charged with second-degree murder in the death of his spouse
Ottawa man charged with murder after elderly man found dead on Good Friday
Richard RUTHERFORD Obituary (1935 – 2022)

Sara McKeddie

Name: Sara McKeddie.
Died: January 22, 2022.
Age at death: 32.
Cause of death: Brain injury.
Location: Arnprior, Ontario, Canada.
Disability: Injuries from car accident; required caregiver.

Details:
Sara was badly beaten by her husband, suffering broken ribs, internal injuries, and a brain injury that would lead to her death about a month later.

Her two boys, ages 5 and 3 when she died, are being raised by her sister.

Case Status:
David Michael Dubois (Husband), pleaded guilty to manslaughter, sentenced to 12 years minus time served.

Sources:
David Dubois to serve almost 10 years for manslaughter near Arnprior
McNab/Braeside man charged with murder 9 months after woman’s death
Obituary of Sara Jean McKeddie

Jacob Ardagna

Black and white photo of a fair-skinned man with dark hair, wearing a white shirt. Name: Jacob Ardagna.
Died: October 27, 2021.
Age at death: 47.
Cause of death: Multiple blunt force injuries.
Location: Hamilton, Ontario, Canada.
Disability: Mental illness.

Details:
Jacob’s son had recently moved in with him when the two got into an argument about money. The two were in the back of the building when Jacob’s son began beating him with a wooden stick, then dragged him back into the apartment, where he beat Jacob severely and went to work, leaving Jacob to die.

Jacob loved the rapper Tupac Shakur. He was cremated wearing a Tupac shirt, and his family wore Tupac shirts to his funeral.

Case Status:
Ryan Cannon (Son), pleaded guilty to manslaughter, sentenced to 9 years.

Sources:
Son sentenced to nine years for vicious assault leading to his father’s death
Hamilton man pleaded guilty to manslaughter in beating death of his dad Jacob Ardagna

Patrick Callighan

No Photo Name: Patrick Callighan.
Died: December 15, 2019.
Age at death: 23.
Cause of death: Knife wounds.
Location: Quinte West, Ontario, Canada.
Disability: ADHD, depression, anxiety.

Details:
Patrick’s father killed him; then he and his mother buried him in cement in their basement. Patrick’s father told the court that he had to kill Patrick because he was threatening his mother with a knife.

Case Status:
Brian David Callighan (Father), pleaded guilty to manslaughter, sentenced to 8 years.
Christine Callighan (Mother), pleaded guilty to improperly interfering with human remains, conditional sentence of 2 years minus 1 day. A conditional sentence is a jail sentence served in the community.

Sources:
Quinte West couple sentenced in death of their son
Father pleads guilty in death of son
Parents charged in their son’s murder to have case tried before jury next year
A Quinte West father pleads guilty in death of his son
Quinte West man facing second degree murder charges

Terri-Lynn Thompson

Name: Terri-Lynn Thompson.
Died: October 14, 2019.
Age at death: 54.
Cause of death: Homicide.
Location: Belleville, Ontario, Canada.
Disability: Unspecified disability; unable to work.

Details:
Terri-Lynn, whose family remembers her as a “loving grandmother” who “was amazing to everyone around her,” was allegedly murdered by her husband.

Case status:
Dewayne Jerome Vacciana (Husband), pleaded guilty to manslaughter, sentenced to 12 1/2 years.

Source:
Man sentenced for killing his wife in Belleville, Ont. over work visa
Belleville man, 38, charged in death of ‘loving grandmother’
INQUINTE.CA | Pre-trial date set for man accused of murder

Harry Jones

Photo of a white-haired, fair-skinned elderly man wearing a soft gray sweater and smiling for the camera. Name: Harry Vincent “Frank” Jones.
Died: March 15, 2019.
Age at death: 66.
Cause of death: Blunt-force trauma.
Location: Calgary, Alberta, Canada.
Disability: Mobility impaired, heart disease.

Details:
Harry, called Frank by his friends, was living in a hotel with another man who helped him by shopping for him. His roommate allegedly cleaned up the hotel room, told the manager “I was never here”, and left. Police arrived to find Harry dead, with multiple broken bones, having been beaten to death. Harry’s roommate was found, arrested, and charged with manslaughter.

Case Status:
Dale Topalinski (Roommate), convicted of manslaughter, sentenced to 9 years.

Sources:
‘A difficult life’: Victim of fatal motel beating was taking break from homelessness
Calgary police identify 66-year-old man as victim in suspicious death at northwest hotel
Frail senior was beaten to death in northwest Calgary motel, prosecutor tells manslaughter trial
Killer handed nine-year prison term for violent beating death of frail Calgary man in his hotel room

Christiane Belzile

No Photo
Name: Christiane Belzile.
Died: October 14, 2018.
Age at death: 69.
Cause of death: Insulin poisoning.
Location: Edmonton, Alberta, Canada.
Disability: Dementia, stroke, diabetes.

Details:
Christiane’s husband gave her a fatal overdose of insulin.

At trial, he called himself “Latimer Two”, in reference to the death of Tracy Latimer, a disabled teenage girl who was killed by her father.

Case Status:
Francois Belzile (Husband), pleaded guilty to manslaughter; sentenced to 2 years house arrest.

Source:
Edmonton man, 75, who killed severely disabled wife on ‘compassionate’ grounds sentenced to house arrest
‘Latimer Two’: Former Montreal man admits to manslaughter for killing disabled wife
Man, 73, charged with murder in 2018 death of wife
Woman found dead in Edmonton apartment suffered from dementia for a decade
Suspicious death of elderly woman at downtown Edmonton apartment
Senior woman dead, husband injured under suspicious circumstances
Police waiting for toxicology results in 69-year-old woman’s death
Autopsy conducted on woman, 69, found dead in Edmonton apartment suite

Florence Girard

Name: Florence Girard. Photo of an older woman with short gray hair, wearing a blue sweater and smiling for the camera.
Died: October 13, 2018.
Age at death: 54.
Cause of death: Malnutrition.
Location: Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.
Disability: Down syndrome.

Details:
In the care of a woman who neglected her, Florence grew steadily thinner until she finally starved to death, weighing only 56 pounds.

Florence was silly, boy-crazy, and liked having her picture taken. She competed in the 1993 Special Olympics. She was one of 14 siblings.

Case status:
Astrid Charlotte Dahl (Paid caregiver with Kinsight), convicted of failing to provide the necessaries of life, sentenced to 100 hours of community service and 12 months of probation. Sentence later increased to 15 months in jail, after Dahl had served 10 months of her conditional sentence and would have been released on good behavior anyway.

Source:
High court replaces conditional sentence with jail term for B.C. caregiver in disabled woman’s death
Caregiver convicted in starving death of woman with Down syndrome avoids jail
Trial underway for B.C. caregiver charged with criminal negligence in woman’s death
Charge stayed against Coquitlam non-profit in starving death of disabled woman
UPDATE: Coquitlam non-profit, caregiver charged in starvation death of disabled woman
Charges laid after woman with disability found dead in B.C. caregiver’s home
Criminal neglect alleged after B.C. woman with developmental disability dies in care
Three charges, including criminal negligence causing death, laid in 2018 alleged starvation of Florence Girard
‘Unforgiveable’: Caregiver charged with criminal negligence, accused of starving woman to death
B.C. caregiver charged with criminal negligence has history of financial troubles