Remembering the Disabled Murdered by Caregivers
Name: Caden Rivera.
Died: April 22, 2009.
Age at death: 2.
Cause of death: Blunt force abdominal trauma.
Location: Cape May County, New Jersey, USA.
Disability: Cerebral palsy.
Details:
Caden’s mother’s boyfriend beat him to death.
Case status:
Damian Rodriguez (Mother’s boyfriend), pleaded guilty to aggravated manslaughter, sentenced to 11-13 years.
Source:
Cape May disabled toddler dies while under DYFS supervision
Wildwood man sentenced to 13 years in Woodbine toddler’s death
Name: Pamela Camille Hall.
Died: April 11, 2009.
Age at death: 59.
Cause of death: Stabbed.
Location: Figsboro, Virginia, USA.
Disability: Spinal cord injury.
Details:
Pamela was stabbed to death by her son-in-law.
Case status:
James Cleveland Miller (Son-in-law) pleaded guilty to first-degree murder and was sentenced to 20 years to life.
Source:
Miller pleads guilty to murder in death of his mother-in-law
Name: Christian Milton Chaote.
Died: April 5, 2009.
Age at death: 13.
Cause of death: Blunt trauma; internal bleeding, skull fracture.
Location: Gary, Indiana, USA.
Disability: Depression, anxiety, ADHD.
Details:
Christian’s parents abused him, eventually beating him to death.
Case status:
Riley Choate (Father), sentenced to 80 years.
Kimberly Kubina (Stepmother), sentenced to 25-35 years.
Source:
Angelizd’s Place: Christian Milton Chaote
Chilling letters of Christian Coate, boy kept in dog cage by his parents
Name: Jeremy Fraser.
Died: March 30, 2009.
Age at death: 9.
Cause of death: Leukemia.
Location: Salem, Maryland, USA.
Disability: Autism, non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma.
Details:
Jeremy was in remission, on the last stage of his cancer therapy, when his mother deliberately withdrew the medication that probably would have saved his life. He died of recurrent leukemia.
Case status:
Kristen LaBrie (Mother), convicted of attempted murder, sentenced to 8-10 years; served 5 years before being granted new trial; pleaded guilty to attempted murder, sentenced to time served.
Source:
Autism Memorial: Jeremy Fraser
New Trial Granted for Salem Mother in Attempted Murder of Son
Woman Who Withheld Chemotherapy Medication From Ill Son Gets Time Served, Freed
Name: Minh Trung “Mike” Tran.
Died: March 28, 2009.
Age at death: 51.
Cause of death: Suffocated.
Location: Elmwood Park, New Jersey, USA.
Disability: Stroke.
Details:
Mike was home for a visit from his nursing home when his wife suffocated him with a plastic bag.
Before his stroke, he was a stay-at-home dad who cared for the children and the house and cooked very good sauce. But after he became disabled, his wife became abusive and eventually killed him and tried to kill their children, who survived.
Case status:
Jenny Tran (Wife), convicted of aggravated manslaughter, attempted murder, and two counts of child endangerment; sentenced to 34-50 years.
Source:
Archive: Elmwood Park woman gets 50 years in husband’s killing despite pleas from her kids
Archive: Tran acquitted of murder, convicted of aggravated manslaughter, attempted murder
Archive: Attorneys argue over defendant’s sanity in Elmwood Park murder case
Archive: Murder defendant told detectives of events leading to husband’s ‘release’
Archive: Daughter told detective Elmwood Park mother tried to kill her earlier
Archive: Daughter saw ‘monster,’ she says at Elmwood Park mom’s murder trial
Name: Betty Lou Erickson.
Died: March 24, 2009.
Age at death: 81.
Cause of death: Gunshot.
Location: Hudson, Wisconsin, USA.
Disability: Alzheimer’s disease.
Details:
Betty’s husband shot her in a murder-suicide.
Case status:
Claire Erickson (Husband), deceased.
Source:
Desperate act from a weary caregiver
More details released in Erickson deaths
Name: Rhonda Casto.
Died: March 16, 2009.
Age at death: 23.
Cause of death: Fall into a ravine.
Location: Columbia River Gorge, Oregon, USA.
Disability: Depression.
Details:
Rhonda’s boyfriend increased her life insurance; some months later, he took her on a hike, where she died from a fall into a ravine. He told police that she must have jumped into the ravine because she had depression; but Rhonda’s family say that even though she was on antidepressant and antianxiety medication, she would never have committed suicide.
Case Status:
Steve Nichols (Boyfriend), pleaded guilty to criminally negligent homicide and coercion, sentenced to 3 years probation. Murder charges were dropped in favor of a plea bargain because mistakes by investigators cast doubt on the state’s case.
Sources:
Rhonda Casto’s Family and Friends Discuss Her Fatal Fall
Man pleads to homicide in girlfriend’s death along Eagle Creek trail
Investigating the death of Rhonda Casto
Name: Shaun Moloney.
Died: March 8, 2009.
Age at death: 46.
Cause of death: Blunt trauma, burns, alcohol poisoning.
Location: Glenroy, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.
Disability: Depression.
Details:
Shaun lived with two roommates. They beat him unconscious, dumped his body in a vacant lot, and set it on fire. Because Shaun had been drinking heavily the day he died, the court could not determine whether the cause of his death had been the beating, the fire, or alcohol poisoning; so his roommates could only be convicted of assault.
Case Status:
Darryl McHarg (Roommate), pleaded guilty to intentionally causing serious injury, sentenced to 3 years 6 months to 6 years 6 months in prison.
Wayne Arthur (Roommate), pleaded guilty to intentionally causing serious injury, sentenced to 3 years 6 months to 6 years 6 months in prison.
Sources:
R v McHarg & Arthur
Two charged with murder of Shaun Patrick Moloney
Pair jailed for assaulting a man who died, but escape charges over his death
MOLONEY, Shaun Patrick | Death Notices | Melbourne
Name: Terrell Stepney.
Died: February 27, 2009.
Age at death: 19.
Cause of death: Prescription medication overdose.
Location: Chesapeake, Virginia, USA.
Disability: Autism.
Details:
Terrell’s grandmother poisoned him and herself with an overdose of prescription medication.
Terrell looked forward to going shopping on school field trips with his special education class.
Case status:
Constance Stepney (Grandmother), deceased.
Source:
Autism Memorial: Terrell Stepney
Student killed by grandmother liked gym, field trips
Name: Julian Adams-Lacas.
Died: February 2, 2009.
Age at death: 6 months.
Cause of death: Head injury.
Location: Denver, Colorado, USA.
Disability: Bilateral cleft lip and palate.
Details:
Julian’s father killed him by shaking him or smashing his head against the floor.
Case status:
Justin Taylor (Father), child abuse resulting in death, 48 years.
Source:
Julian Adams Lacas