Remembering the Disabled Murdered by Caregivers
Name: Julie Kirisits.
Died: October 21, 1990.
Age at death: 23.
Cause of death: Homicidal violence.
Location: Tonawanda, New York, USA.
Disability: Intellectual disability.
Details:
Julie was beaten, strangled, and stabbed to death by her mother.
Case status:
Patricia Kirisits (Mother); pleaded not responsible due to insanity. Four years later she was “legally discharged from supervision”.
Source:
Court Discharges Mother in Child’s Killing
MOTHER FACING MURDER CHARGE WAIVES HEARING
Name: Alice Hummel.
Died: Missing October 6, 1990; body not found.
Age at death: 46.
Cause of death: Missing, presumed dead.
Location: Bellingham, Washington, USA.
Disability: Lupus.
Details:
Alice was killed by her husband. Her body was never found, so we don’t know how she died, but her husband told a cellmate that he had fed her poison in a glass of apple juice to “help [her] get to a better place”.
Alice was a retired teacher.
Case status:
Bruce Allen Hummel (Husband), convicted of first-degree murder, sentenced to 45 years; conviction overturned because the jurors had been questioned improperly. Re-tried; convicted of first-degree murder, sentenced to 26 years; conviction overturned because premeditation could not be proved. Convicted of wire fraud for stealing Alice’s disability checks; spent a total of 10 years in prison before release.
Source:
Bruce Hummel
Murder conviction overturned for Bruce Hummel, again, in death of his wife in Bellingham
The Charley Project: Alice Kristina Wehr Hummel
45 years for man who won’t say what happened to wife’s body
Name: Frédéric Ratier.
Died: November 2, 1987.
Age at death: 3.
Cause of death: Neuroleptic overdose.
Location: France.
Disability: Cerebral palsy, epilepsy.
Details:
32 years after his death, Frédéric’s mother wrote a book in which she confessed to poisoning him with a bottle of neuroleptic medicine. The boy lingered in a coma for three days before dying on his third birthday.
In her book, Frédéric’s mother says she spent the first three years of Frédéric’s life trying to cure him; that lack of support was not a factor; and that she had “given death” to her son because she believed his life was not worth living.
Case Status:
Anne Ratier (Mother), no charges. Statute of limitations on murder in France is 30 years.
Sources:
Anne Ratier
Ratier, A. (2019). J’ai offert la mort à mon fils. City.
“J’ai offert la mort à mon fils” handicapé : le témoignage d’une mère ne passe pas
Anne Ratier a ‘offert la mort à son fils’ : son livre choc
Name: Baby McKay (Never named).
Died: June 18, 1983.
Age at death: Newborn.
Cause of death: Head injury.
Location: Harvey, Illinois, USA.
Disability: Trisomy 13 (Possibly).
Details:
When Baby McKay’s father saw his son’s cleft palate and webbed fingers and had it explained that the baby might have Trisomy 13, he bashed the infant’s head against the delivery room floor, killing him.
Case status:
Daniel McKay (Father). Charged with murder. Case dismissed after two hung juries.
Name: Steven Paul Hughes.
Died: June 1, 1982.
Age at death: 2.
Cause of death: Pneumonia.
Location: Boise, Idaho, USA.
Disability: Spina bifida.
Details:
Steven was born with spina bifida, but his parents didn’t take him to see a doctor because they didn’t believe in doctors. He didn’t get a wheelchair and had to drag himself around on his forearms instead.
Steven died of untreated pneumonia shortly before his third birthday.
Case status:
William Hughes (Father) and his mother, no crime because denying children medical treatment on religious grounds is legal in Idaho.
Source:
These Coffins Represent Kids Who Died Because Their Parents Were Faith-Healers
Idahoans protest faith healing exemptions in Boise
183 Coffins For Idaho Children Killed By Faith Healing Parents
Hundreds March for Repeal of Idaho’s Faith Healing Exemptions
Steven Paul Hughes (1979-1982) – Find A Grave
In Idaho, medical-care exemptions for faith healing come under fire
Name: “Baby Doe”, Anonymous Male.
Died: April 15, 1982.
Age at death: 6 days.
Cause of death: Starvation, pneumonia.
Location: Bloomington, Indiana, USA.
Disability: Down syndrome.
Details:
Baby Doe was born with Down syndrome and an esophageal atresia, which untreated would result in death, but could be treated surgically with a 90% success rate. Advised by their doctor that the baby would have an intellectual disability, Baby Doe’s parents decided not to proceed with surgery. The hospital staff tried to have the court appoint a guardian for Baby Doe, to override the parents’ decision; but the court denied them. Baby Doe died six days later of starvation and pneumonia from aspirated stomach acid.
Case status:
Parents; Walter Owens (Doctor). No crime.
Source:
Baby Doe Law