Remembering the Disabled Murdered by Caregivers
Spouse or romantic partner.
Name: Shilpi Akter.
Died: June 8, 2014.
Age at death: Adult.
Cause of death: Stabbed.
Location: Jadurchar, Hemayetpur, Bangladesh.
Disability: Deaf.
Details:
Shilpi’s husband stabbed her to death.
Case status:
Md Sharif (Husband), convicted of murder, sentenced to death.
Name: Barbara Poucher.
Died: May 23, 2014.
Age at death: 86.
Cause of death: Gunshot.
Location: Ormond Beach, Florida, USA.
Disability: Alzheimer’s disease.
Details:
Barbara was shot dead in her bed by her husband in a murder-suicide.
Case status:
John Poucher (Husband), deceased.
Source:
Caregivers who kill their spouses share traits, experts say
2 dead in apparent murder-suicide in Ormond Beach
Police: Ormond man, 89, shoots, kills wife with Alzheimer’s, then himself
Double-Killing in Ormond Beach: Not Murder-Suicide, But Mercy and Heroism
Name: Anja Dewees.
Died: May 20, 2014.
Age at death: 45.
Cause of death: Skull fracture.
Location: Enfield, Connecticut, USA.
Disability: Chronic illness; liver failure; alcoholism.
Details:
Anja was neglected and abused by her husband and caretaker. She died of a particularly vicious beating, weighing only 70 pounds.
Case status:
John Dewees Jr. (Husband), pleaded guilty to manslaughter, sentenced to 15 years in prison.
Source:
Anja Dewees – Thursday, May 22nd, 2014
Enfield Murder Suspect Did Not Want to Change Wife’s Diaper: Police
Enfield man gets 15 years in beating death of chronically ill wife
Name: Jessica Watkins.
Died: May 4, 2014.
Age at death: 21.
Cause of death: Stabbed, strangled.
Location: Newport, Wales, UK.
Disability: Learning disability, ADHD, autism spectrum disorder.
Details:
Jessica was an extrovert who liked to party. She was a gaming fan who frequented Newport City Gaming, a club that creates videos and live shows based on video games.
Jessica was abused by her boyfriend, who finally killed her by stabbing and strangling her. He had nearly strangled her a month earlier, but the people who completed a Vulnerable Adult Review on her situation did nothing to help, and Jessica returned to her boyfriend.
Case status:
Kristopher Mitchell (Boyfriend), convicted of murder, sentenced to 16 years 8 months to life.
Source:
Autism Memorial: Jessica Watkins
Woman murdered by her boyfriend had been strangled by him a month before – Wales Online
Kristopher Mitchell jailed for Jessica Watkins murder
Newport man, Kristopher Mitchell, admits murder of Jessica Watkins whose body was found in the bath of a house on Bryn Bevan, Brynglas
Jessica Watkins’ murder ‘could not have been prevented’ – report finds
‘This was a brutal attack on a defenceless 21-year-old’: Boyfriend jailed for fatally stabbing Jessica Watkins 27 times in his bathroom
Name: Mary Myatt.
Died: April 27, 2014.
Age at death: 59.
Cause of death: Massive trauma.
Location: Oneida, New York, USA.
Disability: Cognitive impairment after brain aneurysm.
Details:
Mary’s husband drove her to the train tracks and waited until the train hit them, killing them both.
Mary had worked as a teacher’s aide, medical office receptionist, and manager of a college bookstore. She had two sons and four grandchildren.
Case status:
Earl Myatt Jr. (Husband), deceased.
Source:
Grandparents Killed By Train Ruled Murder-Suicide
NY husband steps in front of train with ill wife, leaves behind a mystery
The love that led a couple to stand in front of a train
Name: June Lang.
Died: March 16, 2014.
Age at death: 75.
Cause of death: Gunshot.
Location: Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA.
Disability: Blind.
Details:
After June insisted that the couple should move into an assisted living center, her husband shot her to death.
Case status:
Jack Lang (Husband); pleaded guilty to reckless homicide; sentenced to 8 years.
Source:
Police: Man killed wife after 56 years of marriage because she was “nagging” him
Oak Creek man who killed wife of 55 years sentenced to 8 years in prison
Name: Jean Chamberlain.
Died: February 16, 2014.
Age at death: 70.
Cause of death: Suffocation.
Location: Ogden, Utah, USA.
Disability: Stroke, brain cancer survivor.
Details:
Jean’s husband put a plastic bag over her head and fed helium into it, suffocating her.
Jean survived brain cancer at age 8 and grew up to work at various jobs, including department store assistant, switchboard operator, and hospital employee. She raised five children and welcomed 25 grandchildren. As a young mother, to help make money to feed her children, she sold encyclopedias and sandals out of her home.
Case status:
Dennis Chamberlain (Husband); pleaded guilty to attempted murder, sentenced to three years to life in prison.
Source:
Obituary for Jean Andersen Chamberlain
Elderly Utah man sentenced to prison in death of ailing wife
The Justice Files: Imprisoned elderly man claims it was assisted suicide not murder
Name: Bridget Charlebois.
Age at death: 22.
Cause of death: Pneumonia.
Disability: Quadriplegic.
Died: February 2, 2014.
Location: Phoenix, Arizona, USA.
Details:
Bridget’s abusive boyfriend and caregiver had already been caught once leaving her for twelve hours without food or water.
Bridget was nine months pregnant when she had a medical emergency. Instead of helping her or calling emergency services, her boyfriend let her die. By the time an ambulance was called, Bridget was dead, and it was too late to save her baby boy, Isaiah.
Case status:
Andres Bohn Reyes (Bridget’s fiance), convicted of manslaughter, sentenced to 6-7 years.
Source:
Glendale caregiver arrested for murder of disabled fiancee, unborn son
Phoenix Man Accused of Murdering His Quadriplegic Fiancée and Their Unborn Child
Memories of Bridget Charlebois
Man arrested in 2014 deaths of quadriplegic fiancée, unborn son
Mother of pregnant woman: ‘He watched my daughter die’
Police: Phoenix caregiver let pregnant, quadriplegic fiancee die
Caregiver arrested for murder in death of disabled fiancee, unborn son
Arizona man charged for ‘killing pregnant quadriplegic fiance’
Maricopa County Man Arrested For Death Of Woman, Full Term Unborn Child
County Attorney: The Cold Case of a Cold-Hearted Lover
The Latest: Prosecutor: Caregiver ‘did absolutely nothing’
Man Charged With Killing Quadriplegic And Pregnant Fiancee
Man Accused of Killing Quadriplegic Pregnant Fiancee and Her Unborn Child
Name: Jagtar Gill.
Died: January 29, 2014.
Age at death: 43.
Cause of death: Traumatic injury.
Location: Barrhaven, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada.
Disability: Crohn’s disease.
Details:
Jagtar was an immigrant from India to Canada, and she had met her husband as part of an arranged marriage.
But Jagtar’s husband had fallen in love with another woman; so the two conspired to get rid of Jagtar.
They saw their chance when Jagtar had just returned from hernia surgery and was weak and drugged from painkillers; this made her very vulnerable. So while her husband went to run errands with their daughter to establish an alibi, his girlfriend beat and stabbed Jagtar to death.
Case status:
Bhupinderpal Gill (Husband), convicted of first-degree murder, sentenced to 25 years to life.
Gulpreet Ronald (Husband’s girlfriend), convicted of first-degree murder, sentenced to 25 years to life.
Source:
Gill and Ronald formally sentenced to life in prison for Jagtar Gill murder | Ottawa Citizen
Former lovers found guilty for 2nd time in Jagtar Gill killing
Barrhaven homicide victim was vulnerable, drugged and recovering from surgery
Gill trial: Accused wife-killer hid weapon for fear he’d be blamed, lawyer says
Barrhaven homicide victim was vulnerable, drugged and recovering from surgery
Accused in Jagtar Gill murder trial told police she cut hand opening bag of potatoes
No evidence co-accused in Jagtar Gill homicide ever discussed murder plan, court hears
Accused in Jagtar Gill murder trial came to house after body found, court hears
Accused in Jagtar Gill murder trial asked friend to keep crime scene detail from police
Name: Frances Dresser.
Died: January 22, 2014.
Age at death: 86.
Cause of death: Gunshot.
Location: Carson City, Nevada, USA.
Disability: Paralysis (from fall).
Details:
Frances fell at home and doctors said she would be paralyzed and need to move to a nursing home. Her husband went home, bought a gun, returned to the hospital and shot her in the chest. She died three days later.
Frances Dresser was a great-grandmother who loved music and nature.
Case status:
William Lyle Dresser (Husband), charged with murder; charges dropped by a judge who said, “William Dresser killed his wife, but he is not a murderer”.
Source:
‘No evil in his act’: DA seeks to drop mercy killing murder charge
Murder charge dismissed against William Dresser