Category: No Photo

Carolyn Taurino

No PhotoName: Carolyn Marie Taurino.
Died: February 10, 2016.
Age at death: 57.
Cause of death: Gunshot.
Location: Kershaw, South Carolina, USA.
Disability: Amputee, wheelchair user.

Details:
Carolyn’s son is accused of shooting her to death.

Case status:
Robert Allen Hypes (Son), charged with murder.

Source:
Carolyn Marie Taurino, age 57
Man charged in mom’s murder
Man charged with killing wheelchair-bound mother in Lancaster Co.
Man Charged with Murder of Mom Who Used Wheelchair
South Carolina man accused of shooting, killing his wheelchair-bound mother

Eunice Phiri

No PhotoName: Eunice Phiri.
Died: January 28, 2016.
Age at death: 53.
Cause of death: Blood loss.
Location: Kasungu National Park, Malawi.
Disability: Albinism.

Details:
Eunice’s brother lured her and her 8-year-old son, who also has albinism, out of her home and into a nearby national park. There, they killed her by cutting off her arms. Her 8-year-old son escaped and found his way back home.

Case status:
Msasauko Phiri (Brother), and two others, under investigation.

Source:
Woman with albinism killed in Malawi: no isolated incident
Albino woman murdered in Kasungu: Malawi Police hunt for killers
Malawi: Ritual murders of people with albinism must end

Bertha Coombes

Black and white photo of a young woman with curly hair, in old-fashioned clothing.Name: Bertha Coombes.
Died: January 19, 2016.
Age at death: 83.
Cause of death: Gunshot.
Location: Petaluma, California, USA.
Disability: Mobility impairment; wheelchair user, after “a series of falls”.

Details:
Bertha was shot dead by her husband in a murder-suicide.

Case status:
Harold Coombes (Husband), deceased.

Source:
Police determine east Petaluma deaths murder-suicide
Petaluma couple’s violent deaths a contrast with long, loving relationship

Baby Boy

No PhotoName Unknown.
Died: Undated; article published January 6, 2016.
Age at death: Newborn, less than 6 days old.
Cause of death: Burned alive, following Yanomami tradition.
Location: Caracaraí, Brazil.
Disability: “a malformation in his leg”.

Details:
Quote: When a 21-year-old indigenous woman gave birth to her fourth son in this small settlement in northern Brazil, she noticed that the newborn was suffering from a malformation in his leg. She knew what that meant, but still consulted with the leaders of her Yanomami tribe in a desperate hope for an exception.

It was not to be: the baby was burned alive as part of a ritual, and the ashes were used to prepare a sort of gruel that was offered to all members of the tribe. Though the mother shared her grief with her immediate family, she said she understood that this was the tradition.

Case status:
His mother and tribe were not prosecuted.

Source:
In Brazil, Activists Defend Infanticide Among Indigenous Tribes

Donald Nieman

No PhotoName: Donald Robert Edward Otto Nieman.
Died: December 27, 2015.
Age at death: 89.
Cause of death: Manual strangulation.
Location: Macomb Township, Michigan, USA.
Disability: Dementia.

Details:
Donald’s son beat and strangled him to death.

Case status:
Gregory Lynn Nieman (Son), convicted of first-degree murder, sentenced to life without parole.

Source:
VIDEO: Son sentenced to life in murder of father in Macomb Township, claims innocence
Macomb Township murder defendant wants father’s body exhumed
Son in custody in elderly Macomb Township man’s death (UPDATED)
Macomb Township Man Accused Of Strangling Elderly Dad
UPDATE: Macomb Township slaying suspect was victim’s caregiver, police say
Murder case heading to circuit court
Donald Robert Edward Otto Nieman
Macomb Township man guilty of murder for strangling his father
Combative murder defendant denies he killed elderly father

Yasuko Uechi

No PhotoName: Yasuko Uechi.
Died: December 18, 2015.
Age at death: 82.
Cause of death: Suffocation.
Location: Kihocho, Japan.
Disability: Unspecified physical disability.

Details:
For some time, Yasuko had been asking her son to buy her a powered wheelchair; eventually she bought one for herself. Yasuko’s son allegedly suffocated her because he was angry she had bought a wheelchair he said he couldn’t afford.

Case status:
Norio Uechi; arrested for murder.

Source:
Mie cops: Man killed disabled mother over wheelchair purchase
Man kills his mother because she bought a wheelchair without his permission

Evan Hemsley

No PhotoName: Evan Hemsley.
Died: December 16, 2015.
Age at death: 14.
Cause of death: Cecal volvulus, malnutrition.
Location: Las Vegas, Nevada, USA.
Disability: Joubert’s syndrome.

Details:
Evan’s parents did not get him medical care. Weakened by malnutrition, Evan died from a twisted intestine, weighing 22 pounds.

Case Status:
Kristin Bush (Mother), convicted of child abuse and neglect, sentenced to 28 months to 10 years.
James Bush (Stepfather), convicted of child abuse and neglect, sentenced to 28 months to 10 years.

Sources:
Bush v. Eighth Judicial Dist. Court , No. 73808-COA
Couple sentenced to prison in death of 13-year-old son
Bush v. Wolfson, Case No. 2:19-cv-1096-RFB-VCF
The judge sentenced the Las Vegas couple to jail for the death of their disabled child

Kazuko Saito

No PhotoName: Kazuko Saito.
Died: December 13, 2015.
Age at death: 43.
Cause of death: Sharp-force trauma.
Location: Tokyo, Japan.
Disability: Developmental disability.

Details:
Kazuko’s sister killed her with a knife, then committed suicide.

Case status:
Fumiko Saito (Sister), deceased.

Source:
Murder-suicide suspected after discovery of sisters’ corpses
2 sisters dead in apparent murder-suicide

Violet Barker

No PhotoName: Violet Barker.
Died: December 9, 2015.
Age at death: 92.
Cause of death: Starvation.
Location: Boynton Beach, Florida, USA.
Disability: Mobility impaired; used walker.

Details:
Violet’s son left her alone in her room. She usually used a walker to get around her home, but her son didn’t check on her when she didn’t come out to eat. Only weeks later did he report her death, which medical examiners determined had been from starvation.

Case status:
Robert C. Hart (Son), convicted of aggravated manslaughter of an elderly person or disabled adult, sentenced to 3-5 years; paroled after 3 years.

Source:
Man accused of starving mother to death
Partially mummified woman seen as spry, solitary, struggling
Cops: Florida man let elderly mother starve to death, body decomposed in home
PBSO: Mom, 92, found ‘mummified’ in mobile home; son arrested
Man let 92-year-old mother starve, decompose in her room, investigators say

Payal Sawant

No PhotoName: Payal Sawant.
Died: November 30, 2015.
Age at death: 6.
Cause of death: Traumatic injury.
Location: Mumbai, Maharashtra, India.
Disability: Paraplegic, intellectually disabled.

Details:
Payal and her 8-year-old sister were tortured by their stepmother when their father was away at work. Payal’s stepmother tried to pass off her death as a natural one, but police saw the marks of abuse on her body. Payal may have died when she was strangled, or when she had her head slammed into a wall.

Case status:
Pratibha Sawant (Stepmother); convicted of torture and murder, sentenced to life in prison.

Source:
Bhandup woman held for torturing, killing stepdaughter
Mumbai: Stepmother booked for killing 6-year-old mentally unstable girl
Woman gets life for torture, murder of six-year-old stepdaughter