No Photo – Page 50 – Disability Day of Mourning

Venkatesh

No Photo Name: Venkatesh.
Died: May 22, 2016.
Age at death: 45.
Cause of death: Head injury.
Location: Hyderabad, Telangana, India.
Disability: Leg amputee, alcoholism.

Details:
Venkatesh worked as a stone-cutter until he suffered a leg injury, which got infected so badly that he had to have the leg amputated.

During a domestic dispute, his wife allegedly became so angry that she hit him over the head with a metal rod, killing him.

Case status:
Suguna (Wife), also called Sugunamma, charged with murder.

Source:
Wife smashes husband’s head for selling mobile phone to buy toddy
Drunk housewife kills handicapped husband in frustration
Hyderabad: Drunk wife murders handicapped husband
Pregnant woman killed in accident

No Photo Name: Ava Cole.
Died: May 14, 2016.
Age at death: 8 months.
Cause of death: Head injury.
Location: Lansing, Michigan, USA.
Disability: Cerebral palsy, heart condition, chronic illness.

Details:
Ava was thrown violently onto a couch by her father. The impact caused a head injury which resulted in her death.

Case status:
Tatum Cole (Father), convicted of involuntary manslaughter and second-degree child abuse, sentenced to ten years in prison.

Source:
Lansing man convicted in death of 8-month-old daughter
Michigan man convicted in death of 8-month-old daughter
PEOPLE OF MI V TATUM MICHAEL COLE (Per Curiam Opinion)

Leslie Denn

No Photo Name: Leslie John Denn.
Died: May 9, 2016.
Age at death: Adult.
Cause of death: Gunshot.
Location: Borrowdale, Zimbabwe.
Disability: Depression.

Details:
Leslie was shot in the back of the head. His fiance claimed he had been suicidal, and he had indeed been under treatment for depression, but police ruled it a murder. Leslie’s fiance was charged with murder, having been with him when he died, having burned the mattress on which he was lying, and having reported his death as a suicide; however, she was acquitted at trial due to an inability of the prosecution to bring sufficient evidence to convict her.

Leslie was a businessman who had been the board chairman of CMED and managing director of Nemchen.

Case status:
Pilary Ashton (Fiance), acquitted of murder. The judge’s statement in the case berated the police, prosecution, and forensics department for failure to follow protocol, including failure to analyze crucial gunshot residue samples, which may have led to a “serious miscarriage of justice”.

Source:
CMED Boss Found Dead, Girlfriend Accused Of Murdering Him Set Free As Judge Yet Again Blasts The Police And NPA For A Shoddy Job
‘CMED boss murdered’
Zimbabwe: Fiancee in the Line of Fire… Inquest Into Cmed Boss’ Death Opens
Zimbabwe: CMED Chairman Commits Suicide
Zimbabwe: CMED Boss Was ‘Suffering From Depression’
Leslie John Denn CMED boss shot dead not suicide
Shock twist to death of CMED Official who allegedly committed suicide
CMED boss commits suicide

Gertrud Sigman

No Photo Name: Gertrud “Trudy” Sigman.
Died: May 7, 2016.
Age at death: 92.
Cause of death: Asphyxia.
Location: Orange Park, Florida, USA.
Disability: Alzheimer’s disease.

Details:
Gertrud, whom everyone called Trudy, was a retired professional ballet dancer who had graduated from the Vienna Conservatory. She liked to cook and garden.

Trudy was beaten and strangled to death by her son.

Case status:
Lawrence Sigman (Son), deceased.

Source:
Clay County Sheriff’s Office closes case as murder-suicide
Death investigation underway in wake of domestic dispute
Clay County Sheriff’s Office closes case as murder-suicide
Obituary | Trudy Sigman of Orange Park, Florida

Patricia Gordon

No Photo Name: Patricia Gordon.
Died: April 28, 2016.
Age at death: 63.
Cause of death: Smothered.
Location: Troon, Scotland, UK.
Disability: Health anxiety, depression, lung cancer.

Details:
Patricia hated doctors and didn’t want to go to see one, but was worried that she had lung cancer. One day when she was in pain, instead of taking her to a doctor, her husband smothered her to death with a pillow.

Although he admitted to killing her, the murder charge was dropped after a family member explained to the court how sick Patricia had been and how hard it had been for her husband to care for her.

Case status:
Ian Gordon (Husband), convicted of culpable homicide, sentenced to 3 years, 4 months; sentence overturned, released.

Source:
Pensioner cleared of murder after smothering his wife
Husband who smothered wife to death with pillow cleared of murder
Troon pillow killer Ian Gordon jailed for three years
Judges overturn sentence for man who killed his wife
Husband jailed for culpable homicide over ‘mercy killing’ of terminally wife admonished following appeal

Barbara Kavanaugh

No Photo Name: Barbara Kavanaugh.
Died: April 19, 2016.
Age at death: 88.
Cause of death: Gunshot.
Location: Port Charlotte, Florida, USA.
Disability: Dementia.

Details:
Barbara’s husband went to the nursing home where she was staying, shot her to death, and committed suicide.

Case status:
Frank Kavanaugh (Husband), deceased.

Sources:
Port Charlotte murder-suicide shakes nursing home, friends
Florida right-to-die advocate, wife dead in murder-suicide at nursing home

Jack May

No Photo
Name: Jack May.
Died: April 16, 2016.
Age at death: 89.
Cause of death: Gunshot.
Location: Lecanto, Florida, USA.
Disability: Wheelchair user.

Details:
Jack’s son shot him in the back as he sat in his wheelchair.

Case status:
James Troy May (Son), convicted of second-degree murder, sentenced to 25 years.

Source:
James May is accused of fatally shooting his 89-year-old father inside their Lecanto home
Florida Offender Search

Lynda Cestone

No Photo Name: Lynda Cestone.
Died: April 16, 2016.
Age at death: 56.
Cause of death: Burned.
Location: Lucerne Valley, California, USA.
Disability: Stroke; wheelchair user.

Details:
Lynda was mobility-impaired because of a stroke. Her husband is suspected of killing her by detaching a gas line in their cluttered home and setting it on fire. Lynda and her twelve cats burned to death.

Case status:
Donald Wayne Jenman (Husband), charged with murder.

Source:
Man suspected of causing fire that killed wife arrested
Donald Wayne Jenman, California man, charged with murdering bed-ridden wife Lynda Cestone who died in house fire
Fire investigators suspect man murdered his wife
Husband charged with murder after bedridden wife dies in house fire
Lucerne Valley man arrested in connection to wife’s death
6 Years After A Catastrophic Stroke Leaves Wife Bedridden, Her Home Mysteriously Burns Down. When Her Husband Makes It Out Alive, Police Get Suspicious

Enelesi Nkhata

No Photo Name: Enelesi Nkhata.
Died: April 14, 2016.
Age at death: 21.
Cause of death: Blood loss.
Location: Kumtumba village, Malawi.
Disability: Albinism.

Details:
Enelesi’s uncle knew that some people would pay a lot of money for the body parts of albinos, and so he made an arrangement with a gang of albino hunters.

Enelesi’s uncle told her that he had found her a job and would find her some sunscreen, both of which can be difficult to get for an albino in Malawi.

Then he lured her to a remote location, where he and his accomplices ambushed and dismembered her. She died of massive blood loss.

Case status:
Gerald Phiri (Uncle), convicted of murder and abduction, sentenced to 17 years.
Other suspects: Medison Madzialenga, Damison Manyoni, Isaac Sambule, Yosofi Samuel, Jazimon Baluwa, Foster Weruzani, Steven Chingombe, and Ronald.

Source:
Albino murders spread to Lilongwe; bones prized for wealth charms
Prejudice against people with albinism in Malawi
Albino murders turn to Dowa

Whitney Chilumpha

No Photo Name: Whitney Chilumpha.
Died: April 4, 2016; body found April 13, 2016.
Age at death: 23 months.
Cause of death: Homicide.
Location: Chiziya village, Malawi.
Disability: Albinism.

Details:
Whitney was kidnapped from her bed; some days later, her body was found. She had been dismembered, her body parts sold for ritual magic.

Case status:
White Chilumpha (Father), convicted of murder, sentenced to death.
James Kanjira, convicted of murder, sentenced to death.
Laston Phiri, convicted of being an accomplice, sentenced to 10 years.

Source:
Two Malawians sentenced to death for abducting and killing baby with albinism
Prejudice against people with albinism in Malawi
Murder of baby with albinism highlights failure to protect vulnerable group
A thief broke into the house and went away with 11 month albino
Police launch campaign against Malawi ‘albino hunters’