Status: Sentenced – Page 49 – Disability Day of Mourning

Maureen Boyce

Photo of Maureen Boyce, a middle-aged woman with fair skin and straight blonde chin-length hair. She is wearing a fancy sequined dress and silver necklace. Name: Maureen Boyce.
Died: October 22, 2015.
Age at death: 68.
Cause of death: Stabbed.
Location: Brisbane, Queensland, Australia.
Disability: Bipolar disorder, depression.

Details:
Maureen was a socialite and former model who struggled with depression.

She was stabbed to death by her on-again, off-again boyfriend, who claimed it was suicide even though she had been stabbed so hard that the knife pinned her body to the bed where she was found.

Case status:
Thomas Chris Lang (Former partner), convicted of murder, sentenced to 20 years to life; conviction overturned on appeal; convicted of murder on retrial, sentenced to life.

Source:
Doctor jailed over socialite’s murder
Doctor jailed over the stabbing death of his Brisbane socialite lover has the conviction overturned
Brisbane socialite murder conviction quashed
Accused killer ‘depressed’ in weeks before Brisbane socialite’s death, court told
Tensions before socialite’s death, court hears
Son of man accused of murdering Maureen Boyce speaks out
Tensions before Qld socialite death: court
Accused killer close to tears in court
Former lover accused of jealousy killing – 9News
Sarina Russo expected to testify at trial
Socialite Maureen Boyce ‘wanted alleged killer to leave’
Strange coincidence in socialite murder trial
NZ doctor on trial for murder of Australian socialite
Businesswoman Sarina Russo tells court her friend was ‘very happy’ before her death
Socialite ‘happy’ before alleged murder – 9News
Qld jurors quiz socialite’s fatal wounds – 9News
Murder or suicide in society love triangle: Son speaks out to back murder-accused
Knife handle buried in body: murder trial
Lawyers for NZ doctor on murder charge discredit dead woman: ‘How can you rely on anything she says when she is capable of such blatant lies?’
Thomas Lang sentenced to life for murder of socialite Maureen Boyce
‘Maureen suffered all over again’
New Zealand-based doctor Thomas Lang’s chilling call to cops after murder: ‘There’s a knife in her abdomen – it looks self-inflicted’

Simone Mottram

Photo of Simone Mottram, a woman with fair skin and dark-brown hair in a ponytail, wearing a hot-pink shirt; she is smiling and looking down to the left. Name: Simone Mottram.
Died: October 19, 2015.
Age at death: 51.
Cause of death: Traumatic injury.
Location: Inverell, New South Wales, Australia.
Disability: Mental illness.

Details:
Simone’s son bludgeoned her with a bottle and stabbed her with a kitchen knife.

Case status:
Bradley Craig Mottram (Son), pleaded guilty to murder, sentenced to 13-and-a-half to 18 years.

Source:
‘Troubled’ NSW man jailed for killing mum
Bradley Craig Mottram jailed 13 years for killing mum
Simone Mottram’s murder by her own son still ‘tortures’ her father
‘Totally inadequate’ sentence questioned by relatives as son jailed for killing his mother
Trial tipped in Mottram murder case

Janiya Thomas

Photo of Janiya Thomas, an African-American girl with her hair in a few straggly dreadlocks, wearing a striped shirt. Name: Janiya Thomas.
Died: Last seen June 9, 2014; body found October 18, 2015.
Age at death: 11.
Cause of death: Homicide.
Location: Bradenton, Florida, USA.
Disability: Unnamed bowel/digestive condition, causing incontinence.

Details:
Janiya was last seen by child protective services about a month before her mother, citing Janiya’s medical condition, a digestive problem which had killed Janiya’s father, announced to the state that she had decided to home-school Janiya. In reality, she abused Janiya, locking her in the bathroom for days at a time to punish her.

More than a year later, when her mother publicly beat Janiya’s older brother and child protective services came for Janiya’s four siblings, Janiya was not with them and the children reported that they had not seen Janiya in a long time. Several days later, Janiya’s body was found in a freezer, and her mother was arrested. An autopsy found that Janiya had been starved, suffocated, or drowned.

Janiya was a shy girl who liked hot tortilla chips and baby dolls.

Case status:
Keishanna Thomas (Mother), pleaded no contest to second-degree murder, sentenced to 65 years.

Source:
Mother who hid daughter’s body in freezer gets 65 years
Investigators hope to learn more about presumed death of missing Bradenton girl Janiya Thomas
Autopsy: Janiya Thomas starved, suffocated or drowned
Mother of 11-Year-Old Found Dead in Padlocked Freezer Indicted for Murder; Court Papers Reveal Allegations of Horrific Abuse

James Wilkerson

Photo of a gravestone. It reads: EE3. James Ray Wilkerson. PRC US Navy. Vietnam. Oct 13 1948. Oct 18 2015. We love you Chief Dad. Name: James Ray Wilkerson.
Died: October 18, 2015.
Age at death: 67.
Cause of death: Stabbed.
Location: The Dalles, Oregon, USA.
Disability: Dementia; paraplegic.

Details:
James’s wife went to the veterans’ home where he lived, and stabbed him to death.

James served more than 20 years in the US Navy and was a Vietnam veteran.

Case status:
Esther Wilkerson (Wife), charged with murder, domestic violence, and unlawful use of a weapon; pleaded guilty to manslaughter, sentenced to 10 years.

Source:
Murder at veterans’ home
Find a Grave: James Ray Wilkerson
Fatal stabbing in TD leads to arrest
Woman who killed disabled husband at veterans’ home gets 10 years in prison

Mary Fields

No Photo Name: Mary Fields.
Died: October 15, 2015.
Age at death: 67.
Cause of death: Stroke.
Location: Youngstown, Ohio, USA.
Disability: Mental illness.

Details:
Mary was neglected by her sister; she died of a stroke, brought on by malnutrition and dehydration.

Case status:
Barb Copeland (Sister), pleaded guilty to failing to provide care for an impaired person. Plea agreement involved seeking mental health treatment.

Source:
Former YPD officer pleads guilty to charges related to sister’s death
Former YPD officer indicted for death of sister
Mary Fields – The Warren Record: Obituaries
Former YPD officer pleads guilty to neglecting disabled sister

Geraldine Chandler

No Photo Name: Geraldine Joyce Chandler.
Died: October 12, 2015.
Age at death: 84.
Cause of death: Restraint-related.
Location: Cleves, Ohio, USA.
Disability: “Functionally impaired”.

Details:
Geraldine’s caregivers allegedly caused her death; police reports are unclear how, but apparently they restrained or locked her up and failed to provide for her needs.

Case status:
Kimberly Taggart (Caregiver), pleaded guilty to involuntary manslaughter, sentenced to 8 years.
John Reid (Caregiver), guilty of failure to provide for a functionally impaired person, sentenced to 6 years.

Source:
John Reid | Madison Correctional | Ohio Inmates & Offenders
Caregiver sentenced in 84-year-old’s death
2 indicted in abduction, death of woman, 84

Johanna Hove-Becker

Black and white photo of Johanna Becker. She has light skin and neat, blond shoulder-length hair and is wearing a suit jacket and pearl necklace. Name: Johanna Hove-Becker.
Died: October 8, 2015.
Age at death: 32.
Cause of death: Fall injury.
Location: Mons, Belgium.
Disability: History of mental illness.

Details:
Johanna had had bulimia as a teenager, but recovered and went on to become a psychologist. When she was 32 years old, her husband drugged her, pushed her out of a window, and tried to pass it off as suicide due to mental illness.

Johanna was a triathlete. She was an especially good swimmer–her father said she was “like a seal” in the water. She had a master’s degree in psychology.

Case status:
Craig R. Becker (Husband), convicted of premeditated murder, assault and battery, and conduct unbecoming an officer; sentenced to life with the possibility of parole and dismissed from the military.

Source:
Did she jump or was she pushed? ‘Dateline’ NBC profiles death of former Jacksonville resident
Did she jump or was she pushed? ‘Dateline’ NBC profiles death of former Jacksonville resident
Navy officer sentenced to life for murdering his wife in Belgium
Navy Officer’s Years-Long Murder Case Gets Another Twist with Court Ruling
War Hero Claims Navy Abandoned Him, Others Cry Murder
Johanna Hove-Becker Obituary

Kenneth Mobley Jr.

Gravestone reading Mobley, Edna Mae, 1/24/1926-5/11/1990, beloved mother and grandmother; Kenneth P. Jr, 8/25/1985-10/5/2015, beloved son & grandson. Name: Kenneth Pernell Mobley Jr.
Died: October 5, 2015.
Age at death: 30.
Cause of death: Drowning.
Location: Greenville County, South Carolina, USA.
Disability: Unspecified; dwarfism, “physical abnormalities”.

Details:
Kenneth’s sister beat him and starved him. When she poured hot water over his head, burning him, he drowned.

Case status:
Kendra Mobley (Sister), pleaded guilty to neglect, sentenced to 28 years.
Jamario Alexis Green (Sister’s boyfriend), sentenced to 9 years for failing to report a crime.

Source:
Woman burned, beat her disabled brother, who died weighing 51 pounds
Kenneth Pernell Mobley, Jr (1985 – 2015) – Find A Grave Memorial
Obituary for Kenneth Pernell Mobley, Jr. – MIAMI, FL

John Craig

Photo of Jack Craig, a middle-aged man in a dress shirt, with the bark of a large tree in the background. Jack has brown hair and light skin, large ears and a large nose, and a mustache above a wide smile. Name: John “Jack” Craig.
Died: October 4, 2015.
Age at death: 53.
Cause of death: Suffocation.
Location: Portsmouth, Virginia, USA.
Disability: Unspecified mobility impairment.

Details:
Jack Craig’s boyfriend tied his hands, strangled him, and put a plastic bag over his head, suffocating him. Wanted for an unrelated robbery, the killer confessed but told the police that Jack’s murder had been an “assisted suicide”.

Case status:
Wayne McClellan (Boyfriend/Housemate), pleaded guilty to second-degree murder, sentenced to 40 years in prison with 23 years suspended.

Source:
Portsmouth man gets 17 years in prison for killing boyfriend
Neighbors: Accused killer had party in home while body was there

Jhoel Noria

Photo of a young boy with brown hair and tan skin, smiling; in the background are the walls of a school classroom. Name: Jhoel Noria; also called Jhoel Jesus Gaspar.
Died: September 30, 2015.
Age at death: 12.
Cause of death: Motor vehicle accident.
Location: Trenton, Texas, USA.
Disability: “Special needs”.

Details:
Jhoel died while waiting for the school bus; he walked into the road and was fatally hit by an SUV.

Normally this would have been categorized as an accident, but police investigated and found that Jhoel, whose special needs required supervision, had been completely unsupervised at the time. Suspecting neglect, they removed Jhoel’s three siblings from the home. These three siblings, now able to speak out, told the police that Jhoel’s stepfather and stepbrother had been sexually assaulting all four children. Jhoel’s parents and stepbrother were arrested.

Jhoel liked to play ball and he liked animals, but he had a passion for dancing. He was always showing his family his new dance moves.

Case status:
Pedro Noria (Stepfather), pleaded guilty to aggravated sexual assault of a child under 14, sentenced to 20 years.
Nelson Rodriguez (Stepbrother), charged with aggravated sexual assault.
Noemi Noria (Mother), convicted of continuous sexual assault of a child, sentenced to 30 years.

Source:
Trenton mom gets 30 years in prison in sex abuse case
Father in Trenton child sexual abuse case gets 20 years in prison
Trenton police investigation into 12-year-old’s death leads to sexual assault arrests
Boy killed in Trenton wreck identified
Jhoel Jesus Gaspar Obituary
Family of boy who died while waiting on a school bus arrested on child abuse charges