Remembering the Disabled Murdered by Caregivers
Name: Cory Watts.
Died: July 10, 1985.
Age at death: 22.
Cause of death: Gunshot.
Location: Alexandria, Virginia, USA.
Disability: Head injury from motorcycle accident.
Details:
After Cory’s mother lost a $10-million lawsuit against the company that made the helmet Cory had been wearing during his motorcycle accident, she went home, shot Cory to death, and killed herself.
Case status:
Cordelia Watts (Mother), deceased.
Source:
Lawsuit Lost, Mother Kills Son
Name: Emily Gilbert.
Died: March 4, 1985.
Age at death: 73.
Cause of death: Gunshot.
Location: Fort Lauderdale, Florida, USA.
Disability: Alzheimer’s disease, osteoporosis.
Details:
Emily’s husband killed her by shooting her in the head.
She loved tailored clothes and traveling, and was the mother of one daughter.
Case status:
Roswell Gilbert (Husband), convicted of murder, sentenced to 25 years; granted clemency and released after 5 years. Received $50,000 for the rights to his story.
Source:
‘They adored each other’: Should court free caregiver who killed wife with dementia?
Shots in 1994 Fort Lauderdale death started mercy killing crusade
Roswell Gilbert, 85, Who Killed His Ill Wife and Went to Prison
Gilbert v. State
The Agony Did Not End for Roswell Gilbert, Who Killed His Wife to Give Her Peace – Vol. 27 No. 2
Name: John Robles.
Died: January 19, 1985.
Age at death: 6.
Cause of death: Smothered.
Location: El Cajon, California, USA.
Disability: Cerebral palsy.
Details:
John had spent time in foster care, but was returned to his mother. In the end, he was smothered by his mother, who had gotten away with killing his brother Matthew five years before. John’s death was thought to be natural until his mother went to the police and confessed to both murders.
Case status:
Debra Sue Robles (Mother); confessed to murder; sentenced to 30 years to life.
Source:
An American Tragedy: Mother Kills 2 Children as System Fails
Woman Held in Deaths of Her Disabled Sons
Name: Louise Brown.
Died: May 28, 1984.
Age at death: 14 days.
Cause of death: Homicide.
Location: London, England, UK.
Disability: Down syndrome.
Details:
Louise’s father told police that Louise had been in the family car when it was stolen. When the truth emerged, it was found that Louise had been killed by her father because he could not accept her disability, and her uncle had helped get rid of the body.
Case status:
Paul Brown (Father), convicted of manslaughter, sentenced to 5 years, served less than 2.
Ian Brown (Uncle), served 9 months in jail for helping dispose of Louise’s body.
Source:
Killer Dad Jailed for Murder of Brother; Daughter was first victim.
Name: Baby McKay (Never named).
Died: June 18, 1983.
Age at death: Newborn.
Cause of death: Head injury.
Location: Harvey, Illinois, USA.
Disability: Trisomy 13 (Possibly).
Details:
When Baby McKay’s father saw his son’s cleft palate and webbed fingers and had it explained that the baby might have Trisomy 13, he bashed the infant’s head against the delivery room floor, killing him.
Case status:
Daniel McKay (Father). Charged with murder. Case dismissed after two hung juries.
Name: Michelle Sandor.
Age at death: 14.
Name: Scott Sandor.
Age at death: 11.
Died: September 3, 1982.
Cause of death: Gunshot.
Location: Greenwich, Connecticut, USA.
Disability: Marfan syndrome.
Details:
Scott and Michelle Sandor were shot by their mother, who then shot herself. Their mother also had Marfan syndrome.
Case status:
Linda V. Sandor, deceased.
Name: Matthew Robles.
Died: September 1, 1980.
Age at death: 4 months.
Cause of death: Smothered.
Location: El Cajon, California, USA.
Disability: Hydrocephalus.
Details:
Matthew was smothered by his mother. His death was presumed natural until five years later, when his mother killed his brother, John Robles, and confessed to both killings.
Case status:
Debra Sue Robles (Mother), pled guilty to murder, sentenced to 30 years to life.
Source:
An American Tragedy: Mother Kills 2 Children as System Fails
Woman Held in Deaths of Her Disabled Sons
Name Unknown.
Died: July 16, 2023.
Age at death: 5.
Cause of death: Starvation/dehydration.
Location: Albuquerque, New Mexico, USA.
Disability: Cerebral palsy.
Details:
This five-year-old boy’s mother was charged with starving him so badly that he weighed only thirteen-and-a-half pounds when he died.
Case Status:
Marcella Montelongo (Mother), charged with child abuse resulting in death, died before trial.
Sources:
Mom charged for starving special needs son to death in Albuquerque
Woman accused of starving special needs child found dead at MDC
Albuquerque mom arrested after special needs son dies
New Mexico mother accused of allowing her 5-year-old son to slowly starve to death
Marcella Montelongo, N.M mom red flags were obvious to see
Name: Ellen Alice Wiggs.
Died: May 4, 2024.
Age at death: 72.
Cause of death: Strangled.
Location: Independence, Missouri, USA.
Disability: Kidney disease.
Details:
Ellen’s husband allegedly strangled her as she lay in her hospital bed, where she was staying because she needed a new dialysis port. A detective says he told them that he had done it because he was tired of taking care of his wife and he could not pay the medical bills they owed. He also allegedly confessed that he had already tried to kill his wife twice before.
Case Status:
Ronnie Wiggs (Husband), charged with second-degree murder.
Sources:
Ellen Alice Wiggs (Tippie) Obituary 2024
Missouri Man Allegedly Murders Wife In Hospital Over Depression, Cost Of Providing Care
Man Says He Killed His Wife Because He Couldn’t Pay Her Medical Bills
Husband Strangles Wife in Hospital Over Cost of Medical Bills: Police
Name: Michael Steven Parks Jr.
Died: September 17, 2023.
Age at death: 29.
Cause of death: Malnutrition.
Location: Winston-Salem, North Carolina, USA.
Disability: Down syndrome.
Details:
Michael, who lived with his mother, went to bed one night and died in his sleep. At autopsy, examiners took note of his extremely low body mass index and declared that he had died from malnutrition due to neglect.
Case Status:
Pamela Parks (Mother), charged with involuntary manslaughter and neglect of a disabled adult in a domestic setting causing serious injury.
Sources:
A Winston-Salem woman faces a manslaughter charge after her disabled son’s death in 2023
Autopsy reveals a man died from malnutrition in his mother’s care
Disabled man found dead inside Triad home, woman charged with involuntary manslaughter, officials say
Autopsy reveals Winston-Salem man with Down syndrome died of malnutrition; mother charged with manslaughter