Status: Sentenced – Page 17 – Disability Day of Mourning

Penny Clark

Photo: A woman with fair skin and blond hair pulled back in a ponytail, sitting at a desk, smiling for the camera. She is wearing a blue T-shirt, and leaning her head in one hand. Name: Penny Laine Clark.
Died: May 20, 2019.
Age at death: 45.
Cause of death: Blunt trauma.
Location: Biloxi, Mississippi, USA.
Disability: Epilepsy, mental illness.

Details:
Penny’s boyfriend beat and strangled her, then called police saying she “needed help”; police arrived to find her dead. Her boyfriend’s sister told police that Penny’s boyfriend had a history of abusing her, and that she had been beaten up in the past.

Case Status:
Gary Wayne Wallace (Boyfriend), convicted of first-degree murder, sentenced to life.

Sources:
Biloxi man gets life in prison for girlfriend’s murder in 2019
Arrest warrant reveals disturbing, bloody details in murder of Biloxi woman
“His face was black and blue.” Coast murder trial testimony reveals history of domestic abuse

Steven May

Blurry photo of a young man with tanned skin and dark brown hair. Name: Steven May.
Died: May 20, 2019.
Age at death: 50.
Cause of death: Blunt trauma, broken ribs.
Location: Deepdale, Preston, England, UK.
Disability: Epilepsy, COPD, alcoholism.

Details:
Steven lived with a lodger, whom he told his family was there for company and prepared some meals for him. The lodger abused him, and eventually beat him to death.

Case status:
Darren Taylor (Lodger), convicted of murder, sentenced to 20 years to life.

Source:
Lodger jailed for life for murder of his vulnerable friend Steven May in Deepdale
Preston man Darren Taylor found guilty of murdering vulnerable Steven May
MURDER INVESTIGATION: Neighbours are ‘shocked and saddened’ over death of 50-year-old man
Preston dad Steven May had suffered 76 rib fractures in the weeks before he died, murder trial told

Mavis Long

Name: Mavis Long.
Died: May 10, 2019.
Age at death: 77.
Cause of death: Asphyxia.
Location: Pennant, Ceredigion, Wales, UK.
Disability: Alzheimer’s disease.

Details:
Mavis lived with her husband. After an argument, her husband grabbed and strangled her to death.

Case status:
Frank Long (Husband), convicted of manslaughter, sentenced to 3 years, 4 months, to be served in care.

Source:
Husband Charged And Sentenced For Killing His Alzheimer’s Suffering Wife
Man, 80, jailed for strangling wife after row
Husband in court on wife murder charge
Husband jailed for more than three years for manslaughter of his wife

Binh La

Photo of an Asian man with light skin, black hair in a buzz cut, and a thin black mustache, wearing a brown jacket over a red shirt. Name: Binh La.
Died: May 5, 2019.
Age at death: 28.
Cause of death: Untreated seizure.
Location: Hartford, Connecticut, USA.
Disability: Autism.

Details:
Binh La died from a seizure with no trace of his prescribed epilepsy medication in his body and the prescription unfilled for 11 months. His malnourished body weighed only 85 pounds.

Case Status:
Dat V. La (Father), pleaded guilty to criminally negligent homicide and negligent cruelty to a person, sentenced to 2 years probation.

Source:
East Hartford accountant admits to lesser charges in autistic son’s death
East Hartford man charged with manslaughter, cruelty in autistic son’s death
Man charged in autistic son’s death

Andrew Freund Jr.

Photo of a small boy in a big blue baseball cap and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles T-shirt. He has pale skin and his ears stick out, and he is smiling, showing he still has all his baby teeth. Name: Andrew “AJ” Freund Jr.
Died: April 24, 2019.
Age at death: 5.
Cause of death: Head injury.
Location: Woodstock, Illinois, USA.
Disability: Parents claimed he had oppositional defiant disorder to justify abuse. Whether AJ had a disability is unknown.

Details:
AJ spent some time in a foster home before being returned to his parents. His foster parents and one of his grandmothers released a statement that said, “This smart little boy loved having books read to him, doing puzzles, his Thomas the Train, playing with his fire trucks, bulldozers, cement mixer and Ninja Turtles. He was very curious and always wanted to learn about everything.”

AJ was regularly abused by his parents. He died of head injuries after having been forced to take a cold shower and beaten because he had lied about having dirty underwear.

Case status:
Joann Cunningham (Mother), pleaded guilty to first-degree murder, sentenced to 35 years with no parole.
Andrew Freund Sr. (Father), pleaded guilty to aggravated battery to a child, involuntary manslaughter, and concealing a homicidal death; sentenced to 30 years.

Source:
AJ Freund’s mother sentenced to 35 years in his beating, cold shower murder
A.J. Freund’s Mom Allegedly Had Video of Beaten Kid on Her Phone, Which Helped Solve Case: Docs
Warrant: AJ’s father says his mother killed the boy
Newly released documents reveal graphic details about AJ Freund case
Video of beaten 5-year-old AJ Freund on mom’s phone helped crack case, search was made for ‘child cpr,’ authorities say
Andrew ‘AJ’ Freund’s foster family releases statement: ‘AJ was loved by us’
Photos of AJ Freund’s Crystal Lake home reveal filthy living conditions
Cell phone video led to father’s confession in the killing of 5-year-old AJ Freund, police say
Grand jury indicts parents of slain Crystal Lake 5-year-old AJ Freund; court hearing scheduled for Friday morning

Robbie Ballenger

Name: Robbie Ballenger, also called Robert Williams.
Died: April 15, 2019.
Age at death: 8.
Cause of death: Pneumonia, malnutrition.
Location: Fayetteville, North Carolina, USA.
Disability: Cerebral palsy, epilepsy.

Details:
Robbie lived, along with his twin brother and six other children, with his grandmother and five other adults. The children didn’t go to school or get medical care.

Robbie’s grandmother neglected him. He was not fed enough, and at the age of 8, he died of pneumonia secondary to starvation, weighing only 18 pounds.

Case status:
Geneen Romalia Ballenger (Grandmother), pleaded guilty to child abuse and reckless disregard for human life, sentenced to 10-21 months in prison, suspended, and 18 months probation.

Source:
Fayetteville grandmother pleads guilty in death of disabled 8-year-old grandson
DA: Fayetteville grandma faces 2 years max after child starved to death
Fayetteville boy who starved to death in grandmother’s care had cerebral palsy, weighed 18 pounds :
Fayetteville grandmother faces 2 years max for starving disabled child to death
Disabled boy, 8, ‘was so badly starved by granny his corpse looked like a baby’

Stephen Ihrig

No Photo Name: Stephen Ihrig.
Died: April 12, 2019.
Age at death: 77.
Cause of death: Dehydration, malnutrition, pneumonia.
Location: Martinsville, Virginia, USA.
Disability: Unspecified; incapacitated adult.

Details:
Stephen died from starvation, thirst, and pneumonia due to being neglected by his son and his son’s girlfriend.

Case Status:
Jeffrey Louis Ihrig (Son), convicted of neglect, sentenced to 3 months.
Crystal Rae Painter, convicted of neglect, sentenced to 3 months.

Sources:
Martinsville couple sentenced in father’s death
Martinsville couple found guilty of causing man’s father’s death

Dhunalutchmee Naidoo

Name: Dhunalutchmee Naidoo.
Died: April 8, 2019.
Age at death: 69.
Cause of death: Throat cut.
Location: Durban, South Africa.
Disability: “An unknown disease”; bedbound.

Details:
When Dhunalutchmee’s husband failed to suffocate her with a pillow, he slit her throat with a kitchen knife instead. He said he had done it because she was a large woman and he had difficulty picking her up to give her a bath.

Case status:
Dickson Naidoo (Husband), pleaded guilty to murder, given a 5-year suspended sentence.

Source:
WATCH: Phoenix man who slit bedridden’s wife throat escapes jail time | The Post
Man kills ‘large’, bedridden wife as he’s unable to care for her anymore
Why I slit my bedridden wife’s throat
Durban man confesses to murdering his bedridden wife
Phoenix man due in court for allegedly slitting woman’s throat
Wife murderer confesses he was ‘fed up’
‘My bedridden wife pleaded with me to kill her’

Sarah Dubois-Gilbeau

Name: Sarah Dubois-Gilbeau.
Died: April 5, 2019.
Age at death: 5.
Cause of death: Blunt trauma.
Location: Albuquerque, New Mexico, USA.
Disability: Autism.

Details:
Sarah’s father beat her to death because she refused to do her schoolwork. Her mother says that her father refused to accept she was autistic.

Sarah liked acting out movie scenes and reading Lego Ninjago comic books.

Case status:
Brandon Reynolds (Father), pled guilty to intentional child abuse resulting in the death of a child; sentenced to 30 years to life.

Source:
ABQ man gets life in beating death of daughter
Autism Memorial: Sarah Dubois-Gilbeau
Mom says 5-year-old allegedly killed by father had autism
New Mexico father beat daughter, 5, to death after she refused to do homework: cops
Mother of murdered little girl says she was autistic, claims dad who beat 5-year-old to death over homework ‘couldn’t deal’ with diagnosis
Dad ‘battered autistic girl, 5, to death with shoe for refusing to do homework’
Father is arrested for allegedly beating 5-year-old autistic daughter to death with shoe for refusing to do homework

Jaden and Jorden Webb

Name: Jaden Webb.
Name: Jorden Webb.
Died: April 4, 2019.
Age at death: 8.
Cause of death: Gunshot.
Location: Tucson, Arizona, USA.
Disability: Autism.

Details:
Jaden and Jorden, twin brothers, were shot dead by their grandmother.

Case status:
Dorothy Flood (Grandmother), pleaded guilty to two counts of manslaughter, sentenced to 21 years.

Source:
Autism Memorial: Jaden and Jordan Webb
Tucson grandma sentenced to 21 years for killing grandsons with autism
Grandmother pleads guilty to murdering autistic grandsons
Arizona Woman Indicted in Deaths of Twin Grandsons
Grandmother arrested in deaths of 8-year-old Tucson twins
Grandmother charged with murdering autistic grandsons
Tucson woman admits to shooting her twin autistic grandsons
Arizona woman shot dead her orphaned, autistic 8-year-old twin grandsons, then tried to kill herself by overdosing
Twin Boys With Autism Fatally Shot by Arizona Grandmother, Who Tried to Kill Herself: Court Docs
Court documents: Tucson woman admits to shooting, killing twin grandsons
Police: Woman admitted to killing special needs grandsons
Ariz. woman charged with killing 2 grandchildren with autism
Court documents offer background on killing of twin grandsons
Arizona woman indicted in deaths of twin grandsons