Category: Status: Sentenced

Suspect convicted and sentenced.

Justin Kirby

Photo of Justin Kirby. He is a man with ruddy skin and light brown hair, wearing a white sweatshirt. His hair is cut short; his expression is neutral.Name: Justin Kirby.
Died: September 26, 2015.
Age at death: 26.
Cause of death: Gunshot.
Location: Bloomington, Indiana, USA.
Disability: Rod-cone dystrophy; visual impairment.

Details:
Justin was shot by his wife. She claimed self-defense, but the placement of the bullet wounds proved he had been shot while trying to run away.

He was a stay-at-home dad for his three children; he loved the outdoors and riding his horse.

Case status:
Taylor Roxann Kirby (Wife), pleaded guilty to voluntary manslaughter, sentenced to 15-22 years.

Source:
Justin Wayne Kirby – View Obituary & Service Information
Woman who killed husband sentenced to 22 years
Neighbor says children played 20 feet away from dying father

Thelma Hayner

No PhotoName: Thelma Ruth Hayner.
Died: September 23, 2015.
Age at death: 84.
Cause of death: Heart attack, aggravated by infection from untended pressure sores.
Location: Asheboro, North Carolina, USA.
Disability: Dementia, frail elder.

Details:
Thelma’s son and daughter-in-law allegedly neglected her, leaving her alone at home, locked into her room and in her bed. When she was finally taken to the hospital, doctors discovered multiple severe pressure sores and malnutrition. She died of a heart attack shortly thereafter, her body weakened by infection and poor care.

Case status:
James Hayner (Son), convicted of elder neglect resulting in serious injury and involuntary manslaughter, sentenced to 1 year 1 month to 2 years 1 month.
Kathleen Hayner (Daughter-in-law), convicted of elder neglect, sentenced to 10 months to 1 year 9 months.

Source:
State v. Hayner, 840 S.E.2d 539
Couple charged in alleged elder neglect death

John Pehota

Photo of John Pehota, a fair-skinned, balding man in a sports-themed sleeveless shirt and glasses.Name: John “Jack” Pehota.
Died: September 23, 2015.
Age at death: 77.
Cause of death: Gunshot.
Location: The Hammock, Florida, USA.
Disability: Heart condition, mobility impairment.

Details:
John was shot by his wife.

He loved the outdoors, especially hunting and fishing, and collected guns. In 2005, a local newspaper published a letter to the editor that John had written, in which he complained about a recent ban on beach-going vehicles. The ban on vehicles extended to John’s mobility scooter, and because he could not walk to the beach while carrying his fishing tackle, the ban prevented him from going fishing.

John owned a small dog and was often seen walking the dog around his neighborhood.

Case status:
Anna Pehota (Wife), convicted of second-degree murder, sentenced to life without parole, with a mandatory minimum of 25 years.

Source: Anna Pehota, 75, Charged With 2nd-Degree Murder for Shooting Husband in Hammock
“He Kept Pushing Me Mentally”: Anna and John Pehota’s Life Before She Shot Him

Margaret Yamaguchi

Photo of Margaret Yamaguchi, a middle-aged Asian woman wearing a white dress and holding a bouquet of red roses.Name: Margaret Machiko Yamaguchi.
Died: September 7, 2015.
Age at death: 61.
Cause of death: Stabbed.
Location: Covina, California, USA.
Disability: Unspecified (Assisted living facility resident).

Details:
Margaret’s daughter went to the assisted living center where she was staying and stabbed her to death.

Case status:
Athina Sumi Rivera (Daughter), pleaded guilty to second-degree murder, sentenced to 10-16 years.

Source:
Woman Allegedly Stabs Mother to Death at Assisted Living Facility in Covina
Woman gets 16 year prison sentence for stabbing mother to death at Covina senior living facility
Margaret Yamaguchi Obituary

Julie Collier

Photo of Julie Collier, a woman with straight blond hair, wearing a floppy hat. She is smiling.Name: Julie Anne Collier.
Died: September 5, 2015.
Age at death: 55.
Cause of death: Head trauma.
Location: Chippenham, Wiltshire, England, UK.
Disability: Mobility impairment (wheelchair user), possibly due to alcoholic neuropathy and a bad fall.

Details:
Julie’s husband killed her by beating her in the head and face.

Julie was an outgoing woman whose favorite band was the Manchester pop group “Take That”.

Case status:
Christopher Collier (Husband), charged with murder; pleaded guilty to manslaughter, sentenced to 4 years.

Source:
Man charged with murder in Chippenham
Police launch investigation into Chippenham woman’s death
Neighbours tell of their shock as husband faces murder charge
Family tribute to Julie Collier after murder charge
Man who killed disabled wife in drink-fuelled row jailed
Man who beat disabled wife to death during argument at Chippenham home is jailed for four years
Alcoholic husband jailed for four years for bludgeoning disabled wife to death in Chippenham

La’Marion Jordan

Closeup photo of La'Marion Jordan, a small African-American boy with medium-brown skin and close-cropped black hair.Name: La’Marion Jordan.
Died: September 4, 2015.
Age at death: 5.
Cause of death: Head injury.
Location: Lancaster, South Carolina, USA.
Disability: Cerebral palsy.

Details:
La’Marion’s adoptive father picked him up and threw him down the hallway, causing a fatal head injury.

Case status:
Robert Jordan (Adoptive father), pleaded guilty to infliction of great bodily injury upon a child, sentenced to 14-20 years.

Source:
Father charged with homicide by child abuse after disabled 5-year-old son dies
Lancaster man pleads guilty in adopted son’s death

Brian Darbyshire

No Photo
Name: Brian Darbyshire.
Died: September 2, 2015.
Age at death: 67.
Cause of death: Asphyxia.
Location: Dagenham, London, England, UK.
Disability: Multiple sclerosis.

Details:
Brian’s daughter suffocated him with a plastic bag. She claimed it had been an “assisted suicide” and that Brian had wanted to die because of his MS, but she was convicted of murder.

Case status:
Claire Darbyshire (Daughter), convicted of murder, sentenced to 4 years to life.

Source:
Carer who suffocated her bedridden father found guilty of murder
Convicted murderer living on streets of Hounslow after prison release

Carolyn Hyatt

Photo of Carolyn Hyatt. She is a middle-aged woman with dark hair and fair skin, wearing a pink hat and blue-and-yellow tank top.Name: Carolyn Hyatt.
Died: August 28, 2015.
Age at death: 43.
Cause of death: Stroke secondary to burn injury.
Location: Shirebrook, Derbyshire, England, UK.
Disability: Intellectual disability from having meningitis as a child; diabetes, mobility impairment from stroke.

Details:
Carolyn’s boyfriend poured alcohol over her as she lay in bed, then lit her on fire. Carolyn managed to put out the fire and call emergency services before collapsing on her bed. She was found with burns to 20 percent of her body and taken to the hospital, where she stayed for three weeks before another massive stroke, brought on by her burn injuries, killed her.

Case status:
David Dunstan (Boyfriend), convicted of murder, sentenced to 25 years to life.

Source:
Mansfield man murdered girlfriend he had been seeing for just a month
David Dunstan who murdered special needs girlfriend Carolyn Hyatt is jailed for life
Family pay tribute to murdered sister

Sharon Johnson

No PhotoName: Sharon R. Johnson.
Died: August 27, 2015.
Age at death: 65.
Cause of death: Stabbed.
Location: Fairview, Mississippi, USA.
Disability: Unspecified.

Details:
Sharon was stabbed to death by her caregiver.

Case status:
Jimmy Carpenter (Caregiver), convicted of murder, sentenced to life without parole as a habitual offender.

Source:
Itawamba County murder suspect found guilty
Stabbing suspect charged with murder

Jody Meyers

Photo of Jody Meyers. She has fair skin and blond hair with darker roots. She is holding a cell phone in a leopard-print cover, and wearing a silver ring and a peach sweater.Name: Jody Meyers.
Died: August 26-28, 2015.
Age at death: 20.
Cause of death: Asphyxia.
Location: Mannum, South Australia, Australia.
Disability: Partially deaf.

Details:
Jody’s boyfriend strangled her; then he buried her under a concrete slab in the yard, reported her missing, and pretended to help search for her.

Case status:
Neil Archer (Partner), pleaded guilty to murder, sentenced to 22 years to life.

Source:
Vile murderer’s plea for special treatment
Jody’s grieving family: throw the key away
22 years for ultimate act of betrayal