Short sentence – Page 12 – Disability Day of Mourning

Ethan Okula

Name: Ethan Okula.
Died: February 10, 2016.
Age at death: 10.
Cause of death: Bowel obstruction.
Location: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA.
Disability: Intellectual disability, hearing impaired, vision impaired, chronic illness including a bowel condition.

Details:
Ethan was at school when he began to experience severe stomach pain, so the school sent him home to his foster parents, recommending they take him to the hospital. But instead of getting him medical attention, they put him on the couch and left him there until he stopped breathing. When emergency services were finally called, he was dead from an untreated bowel obstruction.

Case status:
Denise Alston (Foster mother), pleaded guilty to tampering with public documents, sentenced to 3 years probation.
Carol Fletcher (Foster mother), pleaded guilty to endangering the welfare of a child, sentenced to 8 months time served and probation.

Source:
A 10-year-old’s wholly preventable death
Finally, after two years, criminal charges in a child’s heartbreaking death
Couple who left 10-year-old foster kid dying on couch charged
Ethan Okula’s foster mother was sentenced in his tragic death. So many more are to blame
Finally, after two years, criminal charges in a child’s heartbreaking death

Digby Dowdle

Name: Digby Dowdle.
Died: January 23, 2016.
Age at death: 26.
Cause of death: Poisoning, asphyxiation.
Location: Wadalba, New South Wales, Australia.
Disability: TBI due to car accident.

Details:
Digby’s mother sedated him and then suffocated him with a plastic bag.

Digby was often seen walking his greyhound Lucy.

Case Status:
Susan Marie Dowdle (Mother), convicted of manslaughter, sentenced to 2 years; released on time served.

Sources:
CENTRAL COAST MOTHER WHO KILLED SON RELEASED FROM PRISON | NBN News
In loving Memory Of my friend Digby Dowdle 1989 – 2016
’Kind’ mum charged with son’s murder
Digby Dowdle (26) Allegedly suffocated by his mother
R v Susan Dowdle

Adilynn Moseman

Name: Adilynn Moseman
Died: January 21, 2016.
Age at death: 5.
Cause of death: Malnutrition, pneumonia.
Location: Terre Haute, Indiana, USA.
Disability: Mitochondrial disease, microcephaly, cerebral palsy, deafblind.

Details:
Adilynn died because her parents starved her to death. At five years old, the little girl weighed just under 17 pounds. She had six- and seven-year-old siblings who were forbidden to play with her. She died of malnutrition and pneumonia.

Case status:
Tiffany Daugherty (Mother), pleaded guilty to neglect and reckless homicide, sentenced to 15 years.
Brian Moseman (Father), pleaded guilty to neglect of a dependent resulting in death, given two 2 1/2-year suspended sentences, returned to prison after violating parole by drug possession.

Source:
Father in child-death case back in jail on probation, drug charges
Man sentenced to probation in connection to child starvation death arrested on meth charges
Indiana woman who starved daughter to death says 15-year sentence is ‘inappropriate’
Indiana court upholds mother’s 15-year term in neglect death
Despite early intervention, little girl died among neglect allegations
Vigo County couple arrested on neglect charges after death of 5-year-old girl who weighed 16 pounds
Vigo County Couple Face Charges After Five Year Old’s Death
Vigo Co. couple accused of starving 5-year-old daughter to death
Indiana couple charged with neglect in death of 5-year-old
One Parent Charged In Death Of Child Posts Bond
August trial date set in case of Terre Haute 5-year-old who died of starvation
Mother Accused In Daughter’s Death Now Faces More Charges
Vigo County mother in child-death case faces new charges
Trials moved for couple arrested in connection to death of 5-year-old
Indiana mom pleas in death of disabled 5-year-old daughter
Woman accused of neglecting her child to the point of death back in jail, accused of failing to report to probation…three times
Indiana mother sentenced to 15 years in the neglect death of her disabled five-year-old daughter
Man receives suspended sentence in daughter’s neglect death

Mark Fulgham

Photo of Mark Fulgham, an African-American man. He has a short mustache and beard, and is wearing a red baseball cap sideways. Name: Mark Fulgham.
Died: December 31, 2015.
Age at death: 36.
Cause of death: Sepsis.
Location: Concord, California, USA.
Disability: Paraplegic.

Details:
Mark’s wife neglected him until he was dying of malnutrition, dehydration, and infection from untreated bedsores. By the time she finally called for an ambulance, Mark was in such bad shape that he died after a day at the hospital.

Mark’s two children, a 19-year-old autistic boy and an 11-year-old, survived and were rescued from their uninhabitable apartment when Mark was taken to the hospital. The apartment was “red-tagged” by authorities, marking it as too dangerous to for anyone but professionals to enter.

Mark’s wife was charged with neglect of a dependent and child abuse in addition to murder, so it is likely that Mark’s children were also in danger. Mark’s death may have saved the lives of his children by bringing their situation to the attention of authorities.

Case status:
Dormanicia Lawson (Wife), charged with murder, neglect of a dependent, and child abuse; convicted of child abuse and neglect of a dependent; hung jury on murder charge; pleaded guilty to abuse, sentenced to 2-4 years in jail.

Source:
Wife faces charges after paraplegic husband’s ‘horrific’ death
‘Maggots Eating His Body’: Woman Charged in Death of Paraplegic Husband
Murder Charges For Concord Woman Accused Of Neglecting Paraplegic Husband
Wikipedia: Color-tagging
Concord husband neglect case: Jury appears split on murder charge
Concord: Jury hangs on murder charge for woman whose husband rotted to death
Paralysed husband is eaten alive by maggots and rots to death
California Woman Lets Paralyzed Husband Get Eaten Alive By Maggots

Nada Bodholdt

Name: Nada Colleen Bodholdt.
Died: December 31, 2015.
Age at death: 92.
Cause of death: Asphyxia.
Location: Bend, Oregon, USA.
Disability: Congestive heart failure.

Details:
Nada’s granddaughter went to her nursing home, put a pillow over her face, and smothered her. Nada’s family thought she had died a natural death–until her killer confessed the murder to a counselor and was arrested.

Nada Bodholdt was a professional violinist who played her first solo concerto at age 15; during World War 2, she played in nightclubs to make ends meet. After the war, she married a sailor, played her violin in church, and lived to see her great-grandchildren.

Case status:
Angela Christine Judd (Granddaughter), pleaded guilty to second-degree manslaughter, sentenced to 75 months in prison; conviction overturned; pleaded guilty to manslaughter, sentenced to 5 years, released on time served.

Source:
Bend woman to be released from prison after 2nd guilty plea in grandmother’s smothering
Bend woman who smothered her grandmother to death has conviction overturned
Bend woman pleads guilty to manslaughter in grandma’s death
Nada Colleen Bodholdt Obituary
Bend woman accused of smothering grandmother, 92
Bend woman accused of murdering grandmother
Woman confessed to smothering grandmother, police say
Bend Woman Confessed to Smothering Grandmother, Police Say
Woman charged with killing grandmother at retirement community
Former Klamath Falls nurse charged with murder
Reported confession to counselor is admissible, judge rules in death of suspect’s grandmother
Bend woman pleads guilty to manslaughter in grandma’s death
Former Sky Lakes nurse could get 75 months for manslaughter

Evan Hemsley

No Photo Name: 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

Bruce Rangitutia

Name: Bruce Tau Rangitutia.
Died: December 8, 2015.
Age at death: 55.
Cause of death: Head injury, pneumonia, starvation.
Location: Tokoroa, North Island, New Zealand.
Disability: Cerebral palsy, intellectual disability.

Details:
When Bruce’s mother died, he went to live with his brother and sister-in-law, who abused and neglected him. He shrank to 45.7 kilos and was hospitalized after entering a coma. After being stabilized, he was supposed to go to a rehabilitation facility; but his brother and sister-in-law refused this once they realized they would no longer receive money for caring for him; so he went back to live with them. They went right back to neglecting him, including denying him his regular medication. Confined to bed because of malnutrition and unexplained injuries from blunt-force trauma that were likely caused by abuse, he was unable to get food for himself, and his caregivers ignored his cries for food and water. He died of a combination of head injury, pneumonia, bedsores, and starvation.

Case status:
Jovander Raymond Terry (Adoptive brother), pleaded guilty to ill treatment of a vulnerable adult, sentenced to 6 years 7 months.
Annie Mathews (Sister-in-law), pleaded guilty to ill treatment of a vulnerable adult and failing to seek medical care, sentenced to 4 years 10 1/2 months.

Source:
A Tokoroa couple have been jailed after starving a man with cerebral palsy to death – 23-Sep-2019 – NZ Law and Order news
Vulnerable man who drank own urine spends last hours ‘constantly moaning and calling for food and water’
Vulnerable man starved by carers died weighing 6st after begging for food
Tokoroa couple admit starving man with cerebral palsy before he died
View Bruce RANGITUTIA’s Notice on nzherald.co.nz and share memories

Yoki Fujita

No Photo Name: Yoki Fujita.
Died: November 23, 2015.
Age at death: 81.
Cause of death: Drowning.
Location: Saitama, Japan.
Disability: Dementia.

Details:
Ms. Fujita’s husband was scheduled for surgery on his neck, and was worried that he would no longer be able to care for her. He had been approved for public assistance, but rejected elderly-care services.

Just before he was due for the surgery, Ms. Fujita’s husband talked to her daughter, explained that he wanted to kill his wife and commit suicide, and asked her to help him. She agreed, drove them both to the river, and drowned them.

Case status:
Atsuko Namikata (Daughter), pleaded guilty to murder, sentenced to 4 years.
Yoshihide Fujita (Husband), deceased.

Source:
Woman pleads guilty to murder, assisted suicide of parents
Father’s scheduled surgery possibly linked to suicide assisted by daughter
Woman jailed for 4 years for murder, assisted suicide of parents

Josephine Williamson

No Photo Name: Josephine Anne Williamson.
Died: November 21, 2015.
Age at death: 83.
Cause of death: Asphyxia.
Location: Earley, England, UK.
Disability: Dementia.

Details:
Josephine’s husband, having been recently diagnosed with cancer and not wanting her to become an “old hag”, pushed her down the stairs and then strangled her.

Josephine was a retired physical education teacher.

Case status:
Philip Williamson (Husband), pleaded guilty to manslaughter by reason of diminished responsibility; given a 2-year suspended sentence.

Source:
Victim of Lower Earley murder investigation named
Earley pensioner who killed wife reached ‘crisis point’ after being diagnosed with cancer
Dying pensioner spared jail after killing dementia-suffering wife in Reading
Philip Williamson, 88, charged with murdering his wife at their Elm Lane home
Elderly man from Earley sentenced for killing his wife
Murder charge over elderly woman’s death in Earley
Dying OAP escapes jail after killing dementia-suffering wife

Gloria Reilly

No Photo Name: Gloria Reilly.
Died: November 13, 2015.
Age at death: 69.
Cause of death: Possible homicide.
Location: Geraldton, West Australia, Australia.
Disability: Chronic heart and lung disease.

Details:
Even though he knew Gloria’s fragile health made her more vulnerable to such an attack, Gloria’s son pushed her down and choked her. He claims to have let go of her when she said she couldn’t breathe and then left; but when he returned two hours later, she was dead.

Case status:
Damian Reilly (Son), pleaded guilty to endangering the life of his mother; sentenced to one year in jail, given credit for time served and released. Homicide could not be proven because of how frail Gloria already was.

Source:
Son jailed for attacking mum who then died
Son pleads not guilty over 69yo mum’s death
Son jailed for attacking mum who then died
Son gets 12 months’ jail for bashing mother found dead