Category: No Photo

Regina Savage

No PhotoName: Regina Savage.
Died: 1995.
Age at death: Elder.
Cause of death: Gunshot.
Location: Valley Cottage, New York, USA.
Disability: Arthritis, curved spine, cancer.

Details:
Regina was sitting in her wheelchair when her husband came up behind her and shot her in the back with a shotgun, killing her.

Case status:
Richard Savage (Husband), pleaded guilty, sentenced to 14 days in jail plus 28 days time served.

Source:
Mercy killings: After Westchester Medical Center deaths, a look at similar deaths
What is mercy killing? Does Richard DeLucia’s murder-suicide qualify?

Ryan Wilkieson

No PhotoName: Ryan Wilkieson.
Died: December 5, 1994.
Age at death: 16.
Cause of death: Carbon monoxide poisoning.
Location: Hamilton, Ontario, Canada.
Disability: Cerebral palsy, deafblind.

Details:
Ryan’s mother took him to the garage and poisoned him and herself with exhaust fumes. He died only 19 days after the verdict in the Tracy Latimer murder trial.

Case status:
Cathy Wilkieson (Mother), deceased.

Source:
People with Disabilities Outraged by Murders
Remembering…
Open Season
The Latimer Case: The Reflections of People with Disabilities
History of euthanasia in Canada
Brandon Sun Newspaper Archives, Dec 7, 1994, p. 3
Tracy Latimer is dead because her father is a murderer

Cecil Brush

No PhotoName: Cecil Brush.
Died: August 18, 1994.
Age at death: 81.
Cause of death: Stabbed.
Location: Stoney Creek, Ontario, Canada.
Disability: Alzheimer’s disease, blindness.

Details:
Cecil was stabbed to death by his wife, who called it a mercy killing and said Cecil wanted to die. There was no proof that Cecil was suicidal or that he wanted to die.

Case status:
Jean Brush (Wife), pleaded guilty to manslaughter, given a suspended sentence and 18 months of probation.

Source:
History of euthanasia in Canada
Woman Sentenced in Mercy Killing
Of Life and Death – Appendices D-L
Regina v. Brush: March 2, 1995

Sophie Préfaut

No PhotoName: Sophie Préfaut.
Died: August 7, 1994.
Age at death: 23.
Cause of death: Smothered.
Location: Montpellier, France.
Disability: Autism.

Details:
Sophie’s mother drugged her, then smothered her to death. She said that she had done it because Sophie did not want to go back to the hospital, where she had been subjected to neuroleptics and electroshock.

Sophie was an intelligent young woman with a good sense of humor, who could solve cube roots in her head.

Case Status:
Jeanne-Marie Préfaut (Mother), convicted of premeditated voluntary homicide, sentenced to 5 years; sentence suspended.

Sources:
Sanction de principe pour la mère meurtrière de sa fille autiste. Les jurés de la cour d’assises de l’Héraut ont condamné hier Jeanne-Marie Préfaut, 51 ans, à cinq ans de prison avec sursis pour avoir tué le 7 août 1994 sa fille Sophie, 23 ans, autiste, à qui elle avait promis qu’elle ne serait plus jamais hospitalisée. Elle encourait une peine de prison à perpétuité.

Timothy Ellis Jr.

No PhotoName: Timothy Ellis Jr.
Died: June 8, 1994.
Age at death: 2.
Cause of death: Skull fracture.
Location: Jacksonville, Mississippi, USA.
Disability: Autism.

Details:
Timothy was in the care of his father when he suffered abuse-related injuries, including a skull fracture that resulted in his death.

Case status:
Timothy Ellis, Sr. (Father); charges dropped because a judge ruled his confession had been coerced.

Source:
Autism Memorial: Timothy Ellis Jr.
State asks Navy to hear murder case

Michael Messenger

No PhotoName: Michael Messenger.
Died: February 8, 1994.
Age at death: Newborn.
Cause of death: Withdrawal of life support.
Location: Lansing, Michigan, USA.
Disability: Prematurity with a risk of disability.

Details:
When Michael was born at 25 weeks gestation, he had a roughly 50% chance of survival. However, when their doctor told Michael’s parents that if he survived, he would probably be disabled, Michael’s father asked the doctor to leave and shut off the newborn’s ventilator, killing him.

Case status:
Gregory Messenger (Father); tried for manslaughter and admitted to disconnecting Michael’s life support; acquitted.

Source:
The Messenger Case: Summary and Analysis

Layton Myers

No PhotoName: Layton Myers.
Died: May 15, 1993.
Age at death: 67.
Cause of death: Smothered.
Location: Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada.
Disability: Terminal cancer.

Details:
Layton Myers was killed by his daughter and her husband, who put a pillow over his face and smothered him.

Case status:
Michael Power (Daughter’s common-law husband), pled guilty to manslaughter and were given suspended sentences, three years’ probation, and 150 hours of community service.
Cheryl Myers (Daughter), pled guilty to manslaughter and were given suspended sentences, three years’ probation, and 150 hours of community service.

Source:
No jail for N.S. “mercy-killers”
Of Life and Death – Appendices D-L
Robert Latimer: Justice gone awry

Dorothy and Janet Cunningham

No PhotoName: Janet Cunningham.
Disability: Head injury from car accident.
Age at death: 43.

Name: Dorothy Cunningham.
Disability: Osteoporosis.
Age at death: 62.

Died: September 8, 1992.
Cause of death: Traumatic injury.
Location: Farmingham, Utah, USA.

Details:
Dorothy and Janet were hacked to death with a hatchet.

Dorothy, a homemaker, taught piano lessons. Janet loved skiing and was a former member of the National Ski Patrol.

Case status:
Ronald Cunningham (Janet’s father and Dorothy’s husband). Incompetent to stand trial; charges dropped.

Source:
Davis to drop murder counts against man in mental facility
MURDER SUSPECT TO REMAIN IN HOSPITAL

Mark Dowell

Gravestone for Mark Lee Dowell, April 2 1956 to January 27 1992. The stone is a granite plaque engraved with flowers.Name: Mark Lee Dowell.
Died: January 27, 1992.
Age at death: 35.
Cause of death: Drug overdose.
Location: San Diego, California, USA.
Disability: Intellectual disability.

Details:
Mark’s mother allegedly poisoned him with a drug overdose.

Case status:
Josephine Dowell (Mother), status unknown.

Source:
(Untitled newspaper article)
Mark Lee Dowell: Find A Grave

James Nazar

Photo: Tombstone of James Nazar, reading, THEIR LOVE AND TENDERNESS TOUCHED OUR HEARTS FONDLY LOVED AND DEARLY MOURNEDName: James Nazar.
Died: January 23, 1992.
Age at death: 44-45.
Cause of death: Gunshot.
Location: Flin Flon, Manitoba, Canada.
Disability: Quadriplegic.

Details:
James was shot to death by his father in a murder-suicide.

Case status:
John Nazar (Father), deceased.

Source:
People with Disabilities Outraged by Murders
Remembering…
In Memory
Find a Grave: John Nazar