Category: Status: Suspect Deceased

Suspect has died; no trial necessary.

Gertrud Sigman

No PhotoName: Gertrud “Trudy” Sigman.
Died: May 7, 2016.
Age at death: 92.
Cause of death: Asphyxia.
Location: Orange Park, Florida, USA.
Disability: Alzheimer’s disease.

Details:
Gertrud, whom everyone called Trudy, was a retired professional ballet dancer who had graduated from the Vienna Conservatory. She liked to cook and garden.

Trudy was beaten and strangled to death by her son.

Case status:
Lawrence Sigman (Son), deceased.

Source:
Clay County Sheriff’s Office closes case as murder-suicide
Death investigation underway in wake of domestic dispute
Clay County Sheriff’s Office closes case as murder-suicide
Obituary | Trudy Sigman of Orange Park, Florida

Marie Stempinski

Portrait photo of Marie Stempinski. She is a woman with pale skin and gray hair, wearing business attire and chunky red earrings.Name: Marie Stempinski.
Died: April 29, 2016.
Age at death: 72.
Cause of death: Gunshot.
Location: St. Petersburg, Florida, USA.
Disability: Mobility impairment from hip injury.

Details:
Before she retired, Marie had worked as a TV news reporter, then as a public relations consultant. When she suffered a hip injury, she started using a wheelchair.

Marie’s husband shot her and then killed himself.

Case status:
Gerard Stempinski (Husband), deceased.

Source:
St. Petersburg, Florida: Man shoots wheelchair-bound wife and then kills himself
Ex-cop Gerard Stempinski kills wife Marie then himself in murder-suicide in Florida

Barbara Kavanaugh

No PhotoName: Barbara Kavanaugh.
Died: April 19, 2016.
Age at death: 88.
Cause of death: Gunshot.
Location: Port Charlotte, Florida, USA.
Disability: Dementia.

Details:
Barbara’s husband went to the nursing home where she was staying, shot her to death, and committed suicide.

Case status:
Frank Kavanaugh (Husband), deceased.

Sources:
Port Charlotte murder-suicide shakes nursing home, friends
Florida right-to-die advocate, wife dead in murder-suicide at nursing home

Cathy Evans

Portrait photo of Cathy Evans. She is a middle-aged woman with permed dark-brown hair and pale skin.Name: Cathy Evans.
Died: April 5, 2016.
Age at death: 65.
Cause of death: Gunshot.
Location: Springfield Township, Ohio, USA.
Disability: Alzheimer’s disease.

Details:
Cathy’s husband shot and killed her, then killed himself.

Cathy and her husband used to walk the neighborhood, picking up trash as they went.

Case status:
Daniel Evans (Husband), deceased.

Source:
Police: Married couple dead in Springfield Twp. murder-suicide
Dan Evans Obituary
Wife, husband dead after apparent murder-suicide

Luciana Torcello

Portrait photo of Luciana Torcelli; she is an elderly woman with curly gray hair and fair skin. She is wearing a red blouse and glasses.Name: Luciana Torcello.
Died: March 29, 2016.
Age at death: 82.
Cause of death: Asphyxia.
Location: Staranzano, Italy.
Disability: Alzheimer’s disease.

Details:
Luciana’s husband strangled her, then killed himself.

Case status:
Zuppi Pietro (Husband), deceased.

Source:
Staranzano, soffoca la moglie malata e poi si impicca
Staranzano, moglie ha alzheimer. La soffoca e si impicca

Mary Palley

Photo of Mary Palley. She is an older woman with graying blonde hair and fair skin. She is wearing glasses and a pearl necklace.Name: Mary Flynn Palley.
Died: March 11, 2016.
Age at death: 73.
Cause of death: Gunshot.
Location: Logan, Utah, USA.
Disability: Parkinson’s disease.

Details:
Mary Palley was a retired lawyer. She was an advocate for abuse victims, served as a historian for Citizens Against Physical and Sexual Abuse, and did pro bono work for abuse victims, helping them get protective orders.

When she became disabled because of Parkinson’s disease, her husband killed her and then committed suicide.

Case status:
Dell Andrew Johnson (Husband), deceased.

Source:
Logan woman killed in apparent murder-suicide remembered as advocate for victims of abuse
Mary Palley Obituary
Couple identified after letter to newspaper leads Logan police to apparent murder-suicide
‘Something about Mary:’ Logan woman remembered for her passion, selflessness
Police continuing to look for answers in apparent murder-suicide
Logan woman killed in apparent murder-suicide remembered as advocate for victims of abuse

Cynthia Busch

Gravestone of Cynthia Busch and her mother.Name: Cynthia Busch.
Died: March 10, 2016.
Age at death: 24.
Cause of death: Gunshot.
Location: Fairfield Township, Ohio, USA.
Disability: Developmental disability.

Details:
Cynthia was shot by her mother in a murder-suicide.

Case status:
Barbara Busch (Mother), deceased.

Source:
Fairfield Twp. Police identify mother, daughter found dead in murder-suicide
Mother fatally shoots disabled daughter, self in Fairfield Twp.
Police: Mother Killed Daughter, then Killed Herself
Police: Overwhelmed mother killed developmentally disabled daughter
Cynthia Busch Obituary
autism wars: On The Murder of Cynthia Busch
No Mystery Here: Call a Murderer a Murderer
Cynthia Busch: The Disability Holocaust Continues

Michael Furst

Photo of Michael Furst. He is a young man being held up by someone behind him; he is up to his waist in water and leaning over to look into the water. He has red hair and fair skin; his arms are curled over his chest because of spasticity. He wears a blue T-shirt.Name: Michael Furst.
Died: March 6, 2016 (Body found; died February 2016).
Age at death: 24.
Cause of death: Starvation.
Location: Peshtigo, Wisconsin, USA.
Disability: Cerebral palsy.

Details:
Michael died of starvation because his mother, though she was paid a government stipend to care for him, did not feed him. When he was found dead, his body weighed only 36 pounds.

Case status:
Renee Furst (Mother), died of a drug overdose several days after Michael died.

Source:
Peshtigo man with cerebral palsy starved to death by mother — also dead
Peshtigo starvation death investigation complete

Dawn Green

Photo of Dawn Green, an elderly white woman wearing glasses and a yellow shirt with a name tag pinned to it.Name: Dawn Green.
Died: March 2, 2016.
Age at death: 69.
Cause of death: Unspecified homicide.
Location: Newquay, England, UK.
Disability: Unspecified heart condition.

Details:
Dawn was killed by her husband in a murder-suicide.

She played bingo and volunteered at the Newquay Disabled Club.

Case status:
Malcolm Green (Husband), deceased.

Source:
First picture of ‘devoted’ couple found dead at home in suspected murder suicide
Devoted couple found dead at home

Jessica Cunningham

School photo of Jessica Cunningham, a teenage girl with long blonde hair and fair skin, wearing a peach T-shirt.Name: Jessica Kay Cunningham.
Died: February 29, 2016.
Age at death: 15.
Cause of death: Gunshot.
Location: Harvey Township, Minnesota, USA.
Disability: Depression, self-injury.

Details:
Jessica was shot by her older brother in a murder-suicide. He also shot her pet German Shepherd.

Her sister wants her remembered as “a beautiful, blonde-haired girl who loved dogs, drawing, movies, makeup, movie stars and so much more.”

Case status:
David Cunningham (Brother), deceased.

Source:
Murder-suicide: Grieving sister speaks out
Teens fatally shot in Meeker County
After murder-suicide, Minn. man faces child neglect, obstruction
Sheriff: 2 Teens Killed In Meeker County Ruled Murder-Suicide
Murder-suicide begs the question: Why?
2 teens found dead in rural Minnesota home were murder-suicide
Murder-suicide begs the question: Why?