Status – Page 151 – Disability Day of Mourning

JaQuinn Brewton

Photo of a small boy with dark skin and short black hair, wearing a blue jacket. He is holding up both forefingers to the camera. Name: JaQuinn Brewton.
Died: July 12, 2011.
Age at death: 3.
Cause of death: Pancreatic laceration from blunt trauma.
Location: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA.
Disability: Intellectual disability.

Details:
JaQuinn was beaten and burned by his godmother and her boyfriend. His mother had turned him over to their care because she was staying in a homeless shelter. He died from internal injuries after two weeks at the hospital.

Case status:
Nadera Batson (Godmother), convicted of third-degree murder, sentenced to 28 1/2 to 57 years in prison.
Marcus King (Godmother’s boyfriend), pleaded guilty to third-degree murder, sentenced to 10-20 years in prison.

Source:
Godmother Sentenced in Blow Torch, Beating Death of 3-Year-Old Boy
Guilty verdict in torture death of boy, 3
Police: boy died from horrific abuse

Joseph and Nacuma Conant

No Photo Name: Joseph Conant.
Age at death: 11.
Disability: Autism.

Name: Nacuma Conant.
Age at death: 33.
Disability: Mentally disabled.

Died: July 7, 2011.
Cause of death: Multiple murder.
Location: Wheatland, Wyoming, USA.

Details:
Joseph and Nacuma were both killed by Joseph’s father, Nacuma’s brother, in a mass shooting that also claimed the lives of Everett Conant, 18, and Charles Conant, 13, both Joseph’s brothers.

Nacuma was extremely talented in art, and could draw anything anyone asked him to draw. He was working on a post-apocalyptic novel.

Joseph loved animals. As a toddler, he used to ride on his grandmother’s guide dog.

Case status:
Everett E. Conant III; pleaded no contest to murder; sentenced to five consecutive life sentences without parole.

Source:
Autism Memorial: Joseph Conant and family
Pastors recount lives of four slain Wyoming family members
Grieving Town Mourns 4 Wyoming Shooting Victims

Chad Jackson

Name: Chad Jackson.
Died: July 2, 2011.
Age at death: 25.
Cause of death: Starvation.
Location: Grand Junction, Michigan, USA.
Disability: Autism.

Details:
Chad’s mother starved him to death.

Case status:
Yodi Jackson (Mother), pleaded guilty to involuntary manslaughter, sentenced to 6 months in jail.

Source:
Autism Memorial: Chad Jackson
Mom sentenced in death of autistic son
Autopsy: Adult son with autism starved
Van Buren County man with autism was starved to death by his mother, police say
Mom charged in death of son with autism

Romana Bones

No Photo Name: Romana Bones.
Died: June 30, 2011.
Age at death: 13.
Cause of death: Sepsis.
Location: Duval County, Florida, USA.
Disability: Intellectual disability.

Details:
Romana was starved and neglected by her mother. She died of septic shock.

Case status:
Jessica Rivera (Mother), convicted of child neglect, sentenced to 12-18 years in prison.

Source:
Romana Bones, 13
DCF releases child neglect case documents
Woman Gets 18 Years for Daughter’s Death

Christina Meeks

Photo of a toddler girl with pale skin and strawberry-blond hair in pigtails, smiling; she is wearing a pink shirt. Name: Christina Noel Meeks.
Died: June 20, 2011.
Age at death: 4.
Cause of death: Heart attack.
Location: Muskogee, Oklahoma, USA.
Disability: Developmental delay; heart disease.

Details:
Christina died of a heart attack the day after an alleged violent sexual assault by her uncle. Nurses at the hospital reported extensive bruising.

Case status:
Robert Meeks Jr. (Uncle), child sexual abuse, charges dropped with the possibility of re-filing charges.
Betty Hall (Grandmother), neglect, charges dropped with the possibility of re-filing charges.

Source:
Child Neglect Charge Dismissed In Muskogee Girl’s 2011 Death
Affidavit Details Abuse Allegations In Muskogee Girl’s Death

Ruth Pyne

Photo of Ruth Pyne, a woman with layered blonde hair, tanned skin, and a teal V-neck shirt. She is smiling. Name: Ruth Pyne.
Died: May 27, 2011.
Age at death: 51.
Cause of death: Traumatic injury.
Location: Detroit, Michigan, USA.
Disability: Bipolar disorder.

Details:
Ruth’s son bludgeoned her unconscious, then stabbed her to death.

Case status:
Jeffrey Pyne (Son), convicted of second-degree murder, sentenced to 20-60 years.

Source:
“48 Hours”: Does the way Ruth Pyne was killed prove premeditation?
Ruth Pyne Obituary

Hana Williams

Photo of a brown-skinned teenage girl, smiling broadly. Name: Hana Grace-Rose Williams (Born Hana Alemu Befekadu).
Died: May 12, 2011.
Age at death: 13.
Cause of death: Hypothermia.
Location: Sedro-Woolley, Washington, USA.
Disability: Hepatitis B; special-needs adoptee.

Details:
Hana’s adoptive parents starved, beat, and abused her. She died of hypothermia and chronic starvation when she was left outside in the cold as punishment.

Hana enjoyed knitting and crocheting, reading, drawing and various crafts, playing soccer and riding her bicycle.

Case status:
Larry Williams (Adoptive father), convicted of manslaughter, sentenced to 28 years.
Carri Williams (Adoptive mother), convicted of homicide by abuse, sentenced to 37 years.

Source:
Death of Hana Grace-Rose Williams
Hana Grace-Rose Williams (Hana Alemu Befekadu) and Immanuel Williams

Patrick Clare

Name: Patrick Clare.
Died: April 27, 2011.
Age at death: 35.
Cause of death: Depressant overdose.
Location: Coalinga, California, USA.
Disability: Autism-like developmental disability, epilepsy.

Details:
Patrick’s father, a dentist, was removing Patrick’s infected wisdom tooth. When his father had been trying and failing to remove the tooth for an hour, Patrick wanted to stop and leave. Instead, his father administered a total of two doses of Valium and three doses of morphine. This was far too much sedative for Patrick’s 129-pound body, and his father had neither a license to use sedatives nor the necessary monitoring equipment.

Even though a dental assistant pointed out, twice, that Patrick was having trouble breathing, Patrick’s father ignored the problem until Patrick stopped breathing entirely. Patrick’s father performed CPR, described by police as “half-hearted”–using so little pressure that it wouldn’t have been enough to honk a car horn, and without moving Patrick to a firm surface. Patrick was dead on arrival at the hospital.

Case status:
Allen Clare (Father), charged with administering sedatives without a license, pleaded no contest, given three years of probation; probation terminated over a year early, charges dismissed.

Source:
Autism Memorial: Patrick Clare
Dentistry so bad that police called it murder – but DA balked

Jonathan Singer

No Photo Name: Jonathan Singer.
Died: Approx. April 11, 2011.
Age at death: 10.
Cause of death: Drowning.
Location: Houston, Texas, USA.
Disability: Cerebral palsy.

Details:
Jonathan was being neglected; he wasn’t getting enough to eat. His father reported his death, claiming he had drowned in the bathtub, but coroners determined that Jonathan had been badly malnourished.

Case status:
Tina Louise Madrid (Mother), pled guilty to injury to a child, sentenced to 30 years in prison.
Jeffrey Singer (Father), pled guilty to injury to a child, sentenced to 25 years in prison.

Source:
Mom charged in death of son whose body was found in a box
Texas mom charged in death of son whose body was found in a box
Parents Gone Wild! Tina Louise Madrid and Jeffrey Singer charged with the murder of their 10-year-old son, Jonathan Singer

Christina Harms

Photo of Christina Harms, a young blonde woman wearing glasses and smiling broadly. Name: Christina “Nina” Harms.
Died: March 25, 2011.
Age at death: 22.
Cause of death: Dehydration.
Location: Kearns, Utah, USA.
Disability: Fetal alcohol syndrome.

Details:
Christina’s abusive caregivers routinely beat her and tied her to a metal rod in a closet. She died of dehydration combined with an overdose of Benadryl.

Christina wanted to go to college.

Case status:
Cassandra Sheppard (Legal guardian), pleaded guilty to abuse and manslaughter, sentenced to 5 years to life.
Sherrie Beckering (Sheppard’s mother), convicted of aggravated abuse, sentenced to 5 years to life.
Dale Beckering (Sheppard’s stepfather), convicted of second-degree aggravated abuse, sentenced to 1-15 years.

Source:
Kearns man sent to prison for ignoring fatal abuse
Caretaker of abused Utah woman gets prison for her death
Guardian of abused woman kept in closet sent to prison for her death