Remembering the Disabled Murdered by Caregivers
Name: Sandra Nickells.
Died: June 17, 2017.
Age at death: 72.
Cause of death: Gunshot.
Location: Adamsville, Utah, USA.
Disability: Alzheimer’s, chronic illness.
Details:
Sandra was shot by her husband, who called police to report what he had done just before shooting himself as well.
Case status:
Tom Nickells (Husband), deceased.
Name: Colton Johnson.
Died: June 17, 2017.
Age at death: 2.
Cause of death: Cardiac arrest due to untreated infection.
Location: Cincinnati, Ohio, USA.
Disability: Short bowel syndrome.
Details:
Colton’s mother took him to the emergency room because his feeding tube had come out; when doctors there examined him, they realized that the feeding tube was leaking, and Colton had a blood infection and was in critical condition. They immediately decided to admit him into the ICU.
But Colton’s mother, instead of allowing the doctors to treat her son, despite being warned that he could die, took him home from the hospital against medical advice. Early the next morning, Colton’s heart stopped and he could not be revived.
Case status:
Robyn Johnson (Mother), pleaded guilty to neglect of a dependent resulting in death, sentenced to 25 years in prison.
Source:
Mother Who Refused Medical Care for Son Sentenced in His Death
Woman charged with neglect in child’s death here
Name: Henry Lee Johnson Jr.
Died: June 13, 2017.
Age at death: 57.
Cause of death: Pneumonia secondary to major brain damage.
Location: Pine Bluff, Arkansas, USA.
Disability: Stroke.
Details:
Henry lived with his girlfriend. His girlfriend’s brother hit her, and Henry tried to intervene. Her brother turned on him, beat him severely, and then wouldn’t let Henry’s girlfriend call paramedics for several hours. After being taken to the hospital, Henry lived for 11 days before dying of his injuries.
Case status:
Allen Clagget (Girlfriend’s brother), convicted of second-degree murder and domestic battery; sentenced to 15 to 60 years in prison.
Source:
Appeals court upholds Claggett conviction
Claggett guilty in 2017 murder, domestic battery
Bond set for man accused in beating death
Obituary for Henry Lee Johnson at Henson-Holcomb Mortuary
Name: Shakira Hicks.
Died: June 3, 2017.
Age at death: 35.
Cause of death: Burns.
Location: Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA.
Disability: Cerebral palsy.
Details:
As she sat in her wheelchair, Shakira’s brother doused her with rubbing alcohol and set her on fire. She died of her injuries.
Case status:
Nasif Salaam Hibbler (Brother), convicted of first-degree intentional homicide; sentenced to 43 years to life.
Source:
State of Wisconsin v. Nasif Salaam Hibbler
Inmate charged with spitting on guard
Milwaukee man accused of setting sister with cerebral palsy on fire
Man charged for death of disabled sister after he confesses to setting her on fire
Man accused of setting wheelchair-bound sister on fire
“I set my sister on fire:” Man accused of killing woman with cerebral palsy spoke of “voices”
Man Allegedly Set Sister In Wheelchair On Fire
‘I just set my sister on fire:’ Jury convicts man in death of Shakira Hicks, who had cerebral palsy
Name: Brianna Gussert.
Died: May 29, 2017.
Age at death: 13.
Cause of death: Sepsis.
Location: Appleton, Wisconsin, USA.
Disability: Wolf-Hirschhorn syndrome.
Details:
Brianna was neglected by her mother, who declined help whenever she was offered it. She was kept in a filthy room, and her mother didn’t let her go to school, feed her, or change her diaper. She died from sepsis due to neglect, and her death wasn’t reported for five days. She weighed only 33 pounds, down from her normal weight of 50 pounds.
She was a sports fan who played baseball in a special-needs league. She enjoyed watching the Packers and the Badgers play football, and the Brewers play baseball.
Case status:
Nicole Gussert (Mother), convicted of child neglect resulting in death, sentenced to 17 years.
Source:
Wisconsin mom sentenced in disabled daughter’s neglect death
Mom left disabled daughter, 13, in a feces-filled diaper before sepsis death
Obituary for BRIANNA L. GUSSERT – Menasha, WI
Mother arrested in death of special needs daughter
An Appleton woman arrested for the death of her 13-year-old special needs daughter
Appleton Police arrest mom for death of special needs daughter
Appleton woman arrested in death of teenage daughter
Woman Faces Neglect Causing Death Charge
Wisconsin mother charged in horrific “slow death” of disabled daughter
Brianna Gussert: Heartbreak at every turn in Appleton girl’s death
No help came: Heartbreak at every turn in death of 13-year-old Brianna Gussert
Wisconsin mother charged in death of disabled daughter
Shocking case of alleged neglect: US mother charged over death of disabled daughter who ‘suffered immensely’
WATCH: Disabled girl in soiled diaper died ‘slow death’ due to neglect
Disabled teenage daughter found in soiled nappy dies in house smelling of ‘rotten food, human waste and death’
A Wisconsin Woman Allegedly Allowed Her Disabled Daughter To Die Slowly In Horrific Conditions
Girl in Appleton neglect case absent from school 162 days in final year before she died
Investigators: Appleton home smelled of “death”
Appleton mother charged in death of disabled daughter
Girl died of sepsis after mother left her sitting in excrement-filled diaper
Disabled teen neglected by mother and left to die
Teen Girl with Disabilities Suffered a ‘Slow Death’ from Her Mother’s Neglect, Authorities Allege
‘Smell In The Air Of Rotten Food, Human Waste And Death’ — Wisconsin Mom Accused Of Starving And Neglecting Daughter
Court records show 13-year-old Brianna Gussert’s decline over nearly 6 months
Wisconsin teen with disabilities suffered ‘slow death’ due to mother’s neglect, authorities say
As Jessica’s dad, I’m shocked by horrific death of girl with disabilities, but not surprised
Name: Lorraine Gladys Smith, née Shiel.
Died: May 17, 2017.
Age at death: 53.
Cause of death: Gunshot.
Location: Jefferson Township, Pennsylvania, USA.
Disability: “Serious medical issues”.
Details:
Lorraine was shot by her husband in a murder-suicide.
She was a mother of one who enjoyed sewing and collecting Kewpie dolls.
Case status:
Edward Smith (Husband), deceased.
Source:
Washington County couple dies in murder-suicide
Two identified in apparent murder-suicide in Eldersville
Man, woman found dead in apparent murder-suicide
Police Investigating Apparent Murder-Suicide In Washington Co.
Lorraine Smith Obituary
Name: Nancy Jo Gleisinger.
Died: May 16, 2017.
Age at death: 76.
Cause of death: Stabbed.
Location: Goodyear Heights, Ohio, USA.
Disability: Alzheimer’s disease.
Details:
Nancy’s son stabbed her to death in front of her husband Earl.
Case status:
Michael Gleisinger (Son), pleaded guilty to involuntary manslaughter and failure to provide for a functionally impaired person, sentenced to 4 years in prison.
Source:
Nancy Gleisinger Obituary – Akron, OH
Akron man pleads guilty to stabbing mother to death
Akron man pleads guilty to charges stemming from elderly mother’s stabbing death
Akron man accused of stabbing, killing mother to be confined in mental health facility
Akron man pleads guilty in stabbing death of mother, prosecutors say
Man sentenced in stabbing death of mom with Alzheimer’s
Akron man sentenced in stabbing death of 78-year-old mother
Name Unknown.
Died: May 16, 2017.
Age at death: 83.
Cause of death: Dehydration/malnutrition.
Location: Milford, Connecticut, USA.
Disability: Dementia.
Details:
This 83-year-old woman’s grandmother visited her and saw her chapped, bleeding lips, and called the police to ask for a welfare check. When the police arrived, they found the woman dead, and a medical examiner determined that she had died from dehydration and malnutrition. She had also been drugged with antidepressants.
Case Status:
Michael O’Connell (Son), pleaded no contest to negligent cruelty; given a 9-month suspended jail sentence and 2 years probation.
Sources:
Milford man pleads no contest to negligent cruelty charge in mother’s 2017 death
Milford man pleads no contest to negligent cruelty charge in mother’s 2017 death
Name: Kathy Smith.
Died: May 13, 2017.
Age at death: 59.
Cause of death: Stabbed.
Location: Olean, New York, USA.
Disability: Arthritis, emphysema.
Details:
Kathy’s husband stabbed her to death.
Case status:
Edward J. Smith Jr. (Husband), charged with second-degree murder, declared not guilty by reason of insanity, committed indefinitely to a state psychiatric institution.
Source:
Smith not guilty of murdering wife by reason of insanity
Edward Smith’s daughter says mental illness led to murder
911 call played at Olean man’s hearing: ‘I murdered my wife’
Man charged with murdering wife in Olean House released from hospital, held without bail
Olean man accused of stabbing wife to death indicted on multiple counts
Olean man accused of murdering his wife
Police – Husband in Olean calls 911 after murdering his wife
Kathy Smith Obituary
Olean Man Accused of Murdering Wife Appears in City Court
Name: Sabrina Ray.
Died: May 12, 2017.
Age at death: 16.
Cause of death: Starvation.
Location: Perry, Iowa, USA.
Disability: Unspecified.
Details:
Sabrina was tortured and starved by her family. When she died at age 16 after being drop-kicked down the stairs by her adoptive brother and subsequently starving to death, she weighed 56 pounds and looked like an eight-year-old child.
Her death may have saved the lives of her two adopted sisters, who were also abused and were rescued from the home and taken to the hospital when Sabrina was found dead.
Case status:
Marc Ray (Adoptive father), pleaded guilty to child endangerment and kidnapping, sentenced to 35 years in prison.
Misty Ray (Adoptive mother), charged with child endangerment, child neglect, criminal conduct, theft, and fraud, sentenced to life in prison.
Carla Bousman (Adoptive grandmother), pleaded guilty to two counts of false imprisonment, two counts of child endangerment, on count of neglect of a dependent person, one count of accessory after the fact, and one count of obstructing prosecution, sentenced to 20 years in prison.
Josie Raye Bousman (Niece), pleaded guilty to neglect of a dependeent and child endangerment, sentenced to 14 years in prison.
Justin Dale Ray (Adoptive brother), pleaded guilty to two counts of willful injury, sentenced to 10 years in prison.
Source:
Starved teen looked like she was an ‘8-year-old,’ say day care visitors
Disabled Teen Drop-Kicked Down A Flight Of Stairs, Then Held Captive And Starved By Family, Including Grandma
Defenseless Adopted Teen Girl, 16, Drop-Kicked & Starved To Death In Iowa Home
Police: Brother ‘drop-kicked’ starved Iowa girl, grandmother helped in torture
Community mourns Sabrina’s death, plans grief services
A Voice for Sabrina Ray
More Change of Venue Motions Filed in Sabrina Ray Case
New Charges Leveled at Marc and Misty Ray
Perry Fire Department Hopes Justice Is Served For Sabrina Rays’ Death
Sabrina Ray case comes to a close as final family member is sentenced