Status: Other – Page 15 – Disability Day of Mourning

David Leath

Portrait of David Leath. He is a middle-aged man with curly brown hair and beard and light skin; he is wearing a striped shirt. Name: David Leath.
Died: March 13, 2003.
Age at death: 57.
Cause of death: Gunshot.
Location: Knoxville, Tennessee, USA.
Disability: Dementia.

Details:
David’s wife allegedly drugged him, shot him, and then staged the scene to try to make it look like a suicide. She claimed he was despondent over his recent diagnosis of early dementia. However, evidence pointed to murder and she was arrested.

David Leath was a retired barber.

Case status:
Raynella Dossett Leath (Wife), charged with first-degree murder. Her first trial ended in a hung jury; her second trial was a conviction but was overturned; convicted of first-degree murder, sentenced to 51 years to life. Charges related to the death of her first husband were dropped after she was sentenced. Granted a new trial based on the first judge’s drug use; new judge declared that insufficient evidence remained to prove guilt. Case dismissed.

Source:
Raynella Leath
David Robert Leath
Jury selection in accused black widow case underway
Testimony begins for woman accused of killing both of her husbands
Knox medical examiner calls death ‘homicide’ in accused black widow trial

Amber Haigh

Name: Amber Haigh.
Died: June 5, 2002 (Missing).
Age at death: 19.
Cause of death: Missing, presumed dead.
Location: Kingsvale, New South Wales, Australia.
Disability: Intellectual disability.

Details:
Amber, who lived with an older couple, vanished in June 2002, leaving her six-month-old baby behind. In 2011, a coronial inquest declared her dead as a result of “homicide or other misadventure”. It took until 2020 for the couple she had been living with to be arrested and charged with her murder, but a trial ended in acquittal. Amber’s body has still not been found.

Amber’s parents remember her as a kind, loving soul who would help anyone who needed her, and as a dedicated mother who would never have voluntarily left her son behind.

Case Status:
Robert Geeves, charged with aggravated sexual assault (victim with a serious intellectual disability) and murder, acquitted.
Anne Geeves, charged with murder, acquitted.

Sources:
Amber Haigh: Couple accused of killing teen to steal baby acquitted
Geeves couple acquitted of Amber Haigh cold case
Court hears of accusation of body being fed to pigs, calls from psychics as Amber Haigh trial nears its end
Missing teen Amber Haigh was ‘removed from the equation’ after giving birth, court told
Married couple accused of murdering teenage mother in 2002 plead not guilty
Wire tap caught cold case murder accused discussing young mum’s remains, court told
Couple charged over alleged murder of NSW teen who vanished nearly 20 years ago
Couple charged with murder of disabled teenage mum
Man and woman charged over the murder of Amber Haigh
Couple charged with murder 20 years after young mum Amber Haigh vanished
Two charged with missing NSW teen’s murder

Brahim Dukes

No Photo Name: Brahim Dukes.
Died: December 29, 2001.
Age at death: 18.
Cause of death: Starvation.
Location: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA.
Disability: Autism.

Details:
When Brahim’s father was jailed for unpaid traffic tickets, he was left with his stepmother, under whose care Brahim starved to death.

Case status:
Audrey McDaniels (Stepmother); convicted of third degree murder; conviction was later reversed due to violation of double jeopardy rule, and she was released.

Source:
COM. v. McDANIELS | 886 A.2d 682 (2005) | a2d68231489
Autism Memorial: Brahim Dukes
Audrey McDaniels v. Winstead, et al.

Megan McCullar

A heart-shaped gravestone reading, "Megan Lavon. December 16, 1999 to September 22, 2001. McCullar." Name: Megan Lavon McCullar.
Died: September 18, 2001.
Age at death: 2.
Cause of death: Head injury.
Location: Rocky Comfort, Missouri, USA.
Disability: Developmental disability.

Details:
Megan had been removed from her parents’ custody and was living with a foster family she died of massive head trauma, allegedly caused when her high chair was deliberately slammed into a wall. Megan died of shaken baby syndrome, and her foster mother was charged with child abuse, but charges were dropped.

Her foster mother initially claimed that she had not killed Megan; but years later, diagnosed with late-stage cancer, she reportedly confessed to her husband that she had done exactly what they said she had done.

Case status:
Jessica Newhard (Foster mother), charged with second-degree murder. Charges dropped because the case was no longer viable 15 years later and the pathologist who had done the autopsy had died in the meantime.

Source:
Confession leads to murder charges in 15-year-old child death
Charge in 2001 child death dismissed
Missouri trial ordered for woman accused in foster child’s death
Long-dormant shaken baby case moves forward
Missouri Trial Ordered for Accused in Foster Child’s Death
Confession leads to murder charges in 15-year-old child death case
Woman Arrested In 2001 Death Of A 2-Year-Old Girl
Woman charged in 2001 death of Missouri child, 2

Chelsea Craig

Name: Chelsea Craig.
Died: March 19, 2001.
Age at death: 14.
Cause of death: Prescription drug overdose.
Location: Pointe-Claire, Quebec, Canada.
Disability: Rett syndrome.

Details:
Chelsea was poisoned by her mother with a mix of prescription drugs. At trial, The judge ruled that she was not at fault for Chelsea’s death because of her own history of abuse and because of the “stress caused by Chelsea’s disability”.

Chelsea had a pet bulldog named Penny. She was a freshman in high school.

Case status:
Rachel Capra Craig (Mother). Found not guilty because of a mental disorder; hospitalized; died July 2002.

Source:
Autism Memorial: Chelsea Craig
Mother found not responsible in death of disabled daughter
Murderpedia: Rachel Capra Craig
Inclusion Daily Express: Mother Charged With Poisoning Teenage Daughter

Shane Graham

No Photo Name: Shane “Moo” Graham.
Died: July 2000.
Age at death: About 10.
Cause of death: Missing, presumed dead.
Location: Florida, USA.
Disability: Down syndrome, autism, sickle-cell anemia.

Details:
Shane was one of eleven children adopted by the same family. When Shane’s siblings were discovered, badly neglected and abused, they told police that Shane had died and their adoptive mother had taken him away. Shane’s body has not been found, but he is presumed dead.

Shane was called “Moo” because it was a sound he often made.

Case status:
Judith Leekin (Adoptive mother) was charged for child abuse for Shane’s siblings, but since Shane’s body was never found, she has not been charged for his death. Her fraud and abuse charges netted her twenty years in prison.

Source:
Eight in Adoption Abuse Case Agree to $17.5 Million Settlement With Foster Agencies
Autism Memorial: Shane Graham
Shane Graham and 10 Siblings
Children adopted by Judith Leekin

Cory Moar

No Photo Name: Cory Clifford Moar.
Died: December 11, 1998.
Age at death: 29.
Cause of death: Pulmonary thromboembolism.
Location: Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada.
Disability: Intellectual disability, mild hearing loss.

Details:
Cory was beaten repeatedly for years before his death, while living with his brother and sister-in-law. He eventually died from the accumulated injuries and a blood clot in his lungs.

Case status:
Eli Pruden (Half-brother), status unknown.
Linda Pruden (Sister-in-law), status unknown.
Mentions of a trial; charges unknown.

Source:
Tracy Latimer is dead because her father is a murderer
In the matter of the fatality inquiry act and in the matter of Cory Moar

Katie Baker

No Photo Name: Katie Lynn Baker.
Died: May 28, 1996.
Age at death: 10.
Cause of death: Starvation.
Location: British Columbia, Canada.
Disability: Rett syndrome.

Details:
Katie’s mother deliberately starved her to death because she believed that Katie did not want to live.

Case status:
Cheryl Baker (Mother). Never charged.

Source:
Autism Memorial: Katie Lynn Baker
Crown Will Not Lay Charges in Death of Katie Lynn Baker
People with Disabilities Outraged by Murders
Remembering…
History of euthanasia in Canada Tracy Latimer is dead because her father is a murderer

Timothy Ellis Jr.

No Photo Name: Timothy Ellis Jr.
Died: June 8, 1994.
Age at death: 2.
Cause of death: Skull fracture.
Location: Jacksonville, Mississippi, USA.
Disability: Autism.

Details:
Timothy was in the care of his father when he suffered abuse-related injuries, including a skull fracture that resulted in his death.

Case status:
Timothy Ellis, Sr. (Father); charges dropped because a judge ruled his confession had been coerced.

Source:
Autism Memorial: Timothy Ellis Jr.
State asks Navy to hear murder case

Michael Messenger

No Photo Name: Michael Messenger.
Died: February 8, 1994.
Age at death: Newborn.
Cause of death: Withdrawal of life support.
Location: Lansing, Michigan, USA.
Disability: Prematurity with a risk of disability.

Details:
When Michael was born at 25 weeks gestation, he had a roughly 50% chance of survival. However, when their doctor told Michael’s parents that if he survived, he would probably be disabled, Michael’s father asked the doctor to leave and shut off the newborn’s ventilator, killing him.

Case status:
Gregory Messenger (Father); tried for manslaughter and admitted to disconnecting Michael’s life support; acquitted.

Source:
The Messenger Case: Summary and Analysis