Category: Status: Arrested/Charged

Suspect arrested and/or charged; trial pending or no trial information.

James Parham

Photo of a man sitting in a wheelchair. He is wearing a white T-shirt printed with a logao and a worn beige baseball cap. He has light skin, fuzzy gray hair, and a sparse mustache and beard. One of his eyes is pointed off to the side, and his hands are thin and bent with contractures.Name: James “Little Jimmie” Parham.
Died: February 13, 2023.
Age at death: 40.
Cause of death: Unspecified neglect.
Location: Clarksville, Tennessee, USA.
Disability: Unspecified.

Details:
James, called Little Jimmie, died from alleged neglect while in the care of his father and nephew.

Jimmie was a car enthusiast who enjoyed going to car shows.

Case Status:
James Parham Sr. (Father), charged with first-degree murder and aggravated neglect of a vulnerable adult resulting in serious physical harm.
Austin Parham (Nephew), charged with first-degree murder and aggravated neglect of a vulnerable adult resulting in serious physical harm.

Sources:
Father, nephew charged with killing disabled man last February in Montgomery County – ClarksvilleNow.com
James Parham – ClarksvilleNow.com

Cesina Damiani

No PhotoName: Cesina Bambina Damiani.
Died: February 12, 2023.
Age at death: 88.
Cause of death: Strangled.
Location: Casoli, Chieti, Italy.
Disability: Visually impaired; required caregiver.

Details:
Cesina’s son allegedly strangled her, leaving a note apologizing for the crime. Police found him injured after a suicide attempt.

Case Status:
Francesco Rotunno (Son), hospitalized and suspected of murder.

Sources:
Son suspected of strangling disabled elderly mother – English
Disabled elderly woman strangled at home, her son suspected
Donna strangolata in casa, sospettato il figlio 64enne

Rajender Kumar

No PhotoName: Rajender Kumar.
Died: February 3, 2023.
Age at death: 45.
Cause of death: Strangled.
Location: Anand Parbat, New Delhi, Delhi, India.
Disability: Paraplegic.

Details:
Rajender’s son allegedly strangled him because he wet the bed. Police say that Rajender’s son had grown tired of caring for him.

Case Status:
Sumit Kumar (Son), charged with murder.

Sources:
20-year-old kills ailing father for wetting bed

Athena Brownfield

Photo of a small girl with light-brown hair and fair skin, wearing a blue flannel shirt and a giant light-blue bow in her hair.Name: Athena Brownfield.
Died: January 17, 2023 (Body found; died December 25, 2022).
Age at death: 3.
Cause of death: Blunt trauma.
Location: Cyril, Oklahoma, USA.
Disability: Autism.

Details:
Athena and her five-year-old sister lived with a couple who served as their caregivers. On a cold January day, Athena’s sister was found wandering her neighborhood by the mail carrier, but Athena herself was nowhere to be found. Police questioned their caregivers and, after reportedly finding evidence on one of the caregivers’ cell phones, arrested their caregivers. Police believe they have found Athena’s body, but it has not yet been positively identified.

Case Status:
Ivon Adams (Caretaker), charged with first-degree murder and child neglect.
Alysia Adams (Caretaker), charged with first-degree murder and child neglect.

Sources:

Caregiver ‘beat’ 4-year-old Oklahoma girl to death on Christmas, court documents say
Athena Brownfield: Remains found in Oklahoma identified as missing 4-year-old
Body found in search for missing four-year-old Athena Brownfield after caregiver charged with murder
Man Faces Murder Charge In Case Of Missing 4-Year-Old Girl
OSBI, OHP and others searching for missing little girl
Athena Brownfield update: Male caregiver faces murder charge in missing 4-year-old girl, police say
A married couple taking care of a 4-year-old girl is under arrest and face charges in her disappearance, Oklahoma officials say
Second caregiver faces murder charge after disappearance of 4-year-old Oklahoma girl
AZ court docs: Second caregiver of missing Oklahoma child arrested on murder, neglect complaints
Autism Memorial: Athena Brownfield

Kaleb Bogan

Photo of a young boy with dark skin, grinning at the camera, lying back on a pillow, wearing an orange tank top printed with "Let's" (the rest of the message is out of frame).Name: Kaleb Bogan.
Died: January 15, 2023.
Age at death: 5.
Cause of death: Blunt trauma and burns.
Location: Tupelo, Mississippi, USA.
Disability: Autism.

Details:
Paramedics were called to Kaleb’s home, where he was unresponsive. They performed CPR but were unable to revive him, and he was pronounced dead at the hospital, where doctors reported that Kaleb’s body was covered in scars and burns. His mother was arrested.

Case Status:
Brianna Young (Mother), charged with murder, child abuse, and child neglect.

Sources:
Tupelo mother held without bond after charges upgraded to capital murder
Tupelo woman charged with child abuse after 5 year old autistic child died over weekend | Tippah News
Tupelo woman charged after five-year-old autistic son dies | DeSoto County News
Tupelo mom charged in death of 5-year-old son
Funeral Expenses for Kaleb Bogan, organized by Leslie Harris
Autism Memorial: Kaleb Bogan

Walid

No PhotoName: Walid (Surname unknown).
Died: Unspecified; announcement made January 10, 2023.
Age at death: Adult.
Cause of death: Bludgeoned.
Location: Gargarish, Tripoli, Libya.
Disability: Developmental disability

Details:
Walid was living in an institution for people with disabilities two months before he was married to his wife. Some time after that, he was dead. Police released a video in which they interviewed his wife, who first blamed Walid’s death on a home invasion, but then admitted that he collapsed and died after she beat him with a metal broom handle for breaking some coffee cups.

Case Status:
His wife (Arrested).

Sources:
Libya: Woman beats her husband to death for breaking coffee cups
سيدة تقتل زوجها من ذوى الإعاقة لكسره فنجانين قهوة | موقع نساعد
جريمة تروع ليبيا.. سيدة تقتل زوجها لسبب غير متوقع
بسبب تكسيره فنجانين للقهوة.. سيدة ليبية تتخلص من زوجها | المصري اليوم
وزارة الداخلية – ليبيا
جبروت امرأة ضربت زوجها حتى الموت: مبيسمعش الكلام – المصريون

Skyler Wilson

Photo of light-skinned, blond boy wearing a blue print shirt and grinning. He is holding a plastic toy sword.Name: Skyler Wilson.
Died: January 9, 2023.
Age at death: 4.
Cause of death: Hypoxic brain injury.
Location: Winston-Salem, North Carolina, USA.
Disability: Reactive attachment disorder.

Details:
Skyler’s parents allegedly tried to “treat” him by swaddling him tightly–so tightly that he could not breathe. Skyler was rushed to the hospital, but died four days later from a brain injury caused by lack of oxygen.

Case Status:
Joseph Wilson (Adoptive father), charged with murder.
Jodi Wilson (Adoptive mother), charged with murder.

Sources:
Warrants reveal Surry County 4-year-old died of hypoxic brain injury, wrist and ankle straps found in home
Search warrants reveal Surry County 4-year-old died from a hypoxic brain injury
Search warrant sheds light on child’s death
Parents Abused 4-Year-Old Son, Who Languished in Hospital for Days before Dying: Deputies
Husband, wife charged with murder of 4-year-old

Arya Smith

Photo of a girl with brown skin and black hair done in small braids, decorated with barrettes, wearing a blue sleeveless shirt; she is smiling for the camera.Name: Arya Smith.
Died: December 27, 2022.
Age at death: 3.
Cause of death: Stabbed.
Location: Miami Beach, Florida, USA.
Disability: Autism.

Details:
Arya’s mother called 911 and reportedly confessed to killing Arya; when she couldn’t strangle the girl, she stabbed her to death instead. Family said she was “stressed” due to Arya’s possible autism and a recent eviction notice.

Case Status:
Jellisa Baxter (Mother), charged with aggravated child abuse and first-degree murder.

Sources:
‘She loved her baby,’ says dad of J’can held for killing 3-y-o in US | Loop Cayman Islands
Mother charged in stabbing death of daughter, 3, in North Miami Beach apartment
Stepfather of mother who stabbed, killed daughter says woman was ‘stressed’
Autism Memorial: Arya Smith

Jessie Pickle

Photo of a smiling boy with fair skin and short brown hair, dressed in a brown coat over a red flannel shirt, pointing toward the camera. He is smiling, mouth open.Name: Jessie Pickle.
Died: December 26, 2022.
Age at death: 10.
Cause of death: Untreated infection.
Location: Athens, Texas, USA.
Disability: Autism, fetal alcohol syndrome.

Details:
Jessie died from an untreated infection while in the care of his stepmother. Videos provided to the police by his father, who spent long periods away at work and monitored his children with video cameras, show Jessie’s stepmother responding to his obvious illness by locking him in his room for the night; in the morning, she found Jessie dead.

Case Status:
Shonna Pickle (Stepmother), charged with injury to a child.

Sources:
Autism Memorial: Jessie Pickle
Athens woman arrested in death of 10-year-old autistic non-verbal stepson
Affidavit: Athens woman’s abuse, neglect led to death of child

6-year-old girl

No PhotoName Unknown.
Died: December 17, 2022.
Age at death: 6.
Cause of death: Beaten.
Location: Bau, Sarawak, Malaysia.
Disability: Unspecified.

Details:
This six-year-old was allegedly beaten to death by her mother’s boyfriend. Her body was found a few weeks later, stuffed into a sack and hidden in some bushes.

Case Status:
Her mother, arrested on suspicion of murder; now helping the prosecution.
Then Chiew Yern (Mother’s boyfriend), charged with murder.

Sources:
Man charged in Bau with murder of girlfriend’s disabled 6-year-old daughter
One child with disability murdered is one child too many
Couple remanded in connection with seven-year-old girl’s murder in Kuching
Lovebirds in remand over murder of six-year-old girl
Nancy orders protection for family of murdered Sarawak girl
Nancy instructs ministry to assist murdered disabled girl’s family in Bau
The evil that men do: Disabled girl, 6, killed, stuffed into a sack and thrown into the bushes by mother’s boyfriend