Status – Page 169 – Disability Day of Mourning

Aleksi Toledo

No Photo Name: Aleksi Morgan Pressey Toledo.
Died: May 13, 2008.
Age at death: 4.
Cause of death: Neglect.
Location: San Bernardino County, California, USA.
Disability: Autism, juvenile diabetes.

Details:
Aleksi’s diabetes treatment was withheld and he was starved and dehydrated. He died of diabetic ketoacidosis with no fat left on his body. It is alleged that his mother chose not to seek medical attention, even though she could have saved his life had she done so.

Case status:
Father, D. T., no charges
Mother, unnamed, charged with child endangerment.

Source:
Autism Memorial: Aleksi Toledo
D.T. v. Superior Court
Death Record

Lavender Banks

Photo of Lavender Banks, a little girl in a pink dress and pink hair ribbons. She has a cleft lip. Name: Lavender Banks.
Died: May 2, 2008.
Age at death: 3.
Cause of death: Asphyxia, blunt trauma.
Location: Elk Grove, California, USA.
Disability: Cleft lip/palate.

Details:
Lavender was beaten and smothered by her adoptive mother.

She was an international adoptee from China.

Case status:
Sabrina Banks (Adoptive mother), pleaded no contest to second-degree murder, sentenced to 15 years to life.

Source:
Lavender Banks

Sonya Todd

Name: Sonya Todd.
Died: March 23, 2008.
Age at death: 21.
Cause of death: Traumatic injury and diabetic crisis.
Location: Methil, Fife, Scotland, UK.
Disability: Diabetes, asthma.

Details:
Sonya’s boyfriend beat her during a diabetic episode; the injuries he inflicted on her, in addition to the diabetic crisis, were enough to kill.

She was an academically talented young woman who liked doing volunteer work. She left behind a six-year-old daughter.

Case status:
David Craige (Partner), pleaded guilty to culpable homicide, sentenced to 6 years. Released; now dating another woman with a disability.

Source:
Killer who beat mum to death with dog chain free and has ‘vulnerable’ girlfriend
Horror find at Methil flat
Man jailed for dog chain killing
Jealous Fife man jailed for killing girlfriend
Grieving dad’s anger as daughter’s killer gets six years

Madeline Neumann

Photo of Madeline Neumann, a fair-skinned teen girl in a green T-shirt. Her brown hair is tied back in a ponytail, and her bangs are falling over her face. Name: Madeline Kara Neumann.
Died: March 23, 2008.
Age at death: 11.
Cause of death: Untreated diabetes.
Location: Weston, Wisconsin, USA.
Disability: Juvenile diabetes.

Details:
Madeline’s parents, who believed that visiting a doctor was “idolatry”, refused to get Madeline medical treatment. Madeline died of untreated diabetes.

Case status:
Leilani Neumann (Mother), convicted of second-degree reckless homicide and sentenced to serve one month per year in jail for six years.
Dave Neumann (Father), convicted of second-degree reckless homicide and sentenced to serve one month per year in jail for six years.

Source:
Wisconsin Couple Sentenced in Death of Their Sick Child
Kara Neumann case
Homeschooling’s Invisible Children: Madeline Kara Neumann

Nicolai Emelyantsev

Photo of Nicolai Emelyantsev, a solemn infant in pajamas; he has a wisp of blond hair and a round face with very pale skin. Name: Nicolai Emelyantsev.
Died: March 7, 2008.
Age at death: 14 months.
Cause of death: Skull fracture.
Location: Tooele, Utah, USA.
Disability: Down syndrome.

Details:
Nicolai’s adoptive mother killed him by deliberately slamming him against the floor, causing a skull fracture.

Case status:
Kimberly Emelyantsev (Adoptive mother), pleaded guilty to child-abuse homicide, sentenced to 1-15 years.

Source:
Kimberly Emelyantsev | Murderpedia, the encyclopedia of murderers
Nicolai Emelyantsev

Michelle Thomson

Photo of Michelle Thomson, a teenage girl with wavy brown hair and light skin, wearing a striped shirt. Name: Michelle Thomson.
Died: March 5, 2008.
Age at death: 25.
Cause of death: Stabbed.
Location: Buckhaven, Fife, Scotland.
Disability: Intellectual disability.

Details:
Michelle and her little brother Ryan were stabbed to death by her father.

Case status:
Rab Thomson (Father), sentenced to 17 years to life in prison.

Source:
Mother tells of agony after disabled daughter, 25, and son, 7, are brutally murdered by ex-husband bent on revenge
Traumatised mum who endured terrible loss of two children fears being made homeless after cruel benefits blow
Criminologist reveals how killer Rab Thomson murdered his children in a bid to seek revenge against his wife
Handicapped woman and brother found murdered

Cheyenne Wolf

Photo of a teen girl with wavy strawberry-blond hair in a half-ponytail; she is smiling for the camera, wearing a pink shirt with black stripes. Name: Cheyenne Wolf.
Died: March or April 2008.
Age at death: 12.
Cause of death: Homicide.
Location: Durant, Oklahoma, USA.
Disability: Spina bifida.

Details:
Cheyenne’s stepmother tied her to a chair and beat her. When she died, her father helped hide the body.

Case status:
Denise Wolf (Stepmother); convicted of child abuse, child abuse by neglect, and unlawful removal of a dead body; sentenced to 5 consecutive life terms.
Able Wolf (Father), pleaded guilty to child abuse, child abuse by neglect, and unlawful removal of a dead body; sentenced to 3 concurrent life terms.

Source:
Sisters testify they saw Cheyenne Wolf abused before she died
Cheyenne Noell Wolf
Bryan County judge sentences stepmother for abuse, calls her ‘unfit for society’

Calista Springer

Portrait photo of a teenage girl with shoulder-length dark auburn hair and pale skin, smiling, wearing a pink polka-dotted turtleneck. Name: Calista Springer.
Died: February 27, 2008.
Age at death: 16.
Cause of death: Fire.
Location: Centreville, Michigan, USA.
Disability: Autism.

Details:
Calista’s parents tied her to her bed with zip ties and a dog collar, and when the house caught fire, her entire family left the house; none of them stopped to release her. She died in the fire.

Case status:
Anthony Springer (Father), child abuse and torture, 25-50 years.
Marsha Springer (Stepmother), child abuse and torture, 8-19 years.

Source:
Autism Memorial: Calista Springer
Calista Springer
Calista Springer: Adoption, abuse, neglect and murder
Calista Springer
Protective services workers can’t be sued in Calista Springer case, U.S. Court of Appeals affirms
Unforgotten Angels: Calista Springer

Courtney Wise

No Photo Name: Courtney Wise.
Died: February 18, 2008.
Age at death: 17.
Cause of death: Malnutrition.
Location: St. Catharines, Ontario, Canada.
Disability: Cerebral palsy.

Details:
Courtney’s mother neglected and starved her to death.

Case status:
Astrid Hueller (Mother), pled guilty to manslaughter, sentenced to 6 years in jail, minus double time served, for a total of five years.

Source:
Mother pleads guilty to manslaughter –
Mother gets six years for daughter’s death

Sarah-Jane Dore

Photo of Sarah-Jane Dore, a white woman with blonde hair. She is wearing glasses and a collared shirt. Name: Sarah-Jane Dore.
Died: February 14, 2008.
Age at death: 26.
Cause of death: Gunshot.
Location: Western Southland, New Zealand.
Disability: Intellectual disability.

Details:
Sarah-Jane’s father shot her, then killed himself.

Sarah-Jane was a powerlifter who competed in the 2007 Shanghai Special Olympics.

Case status:
Graeme Dore (Father), deceased.

Source:
Father, daughter shot dead
Find a Grave: Sarah-Jane Dore