Maxwell Peterson

Photo of a teenage boy with strawberry-blond hair and fair skin, smiling, wearing a yellow T-shirt.Name: Maxwell J. Peterson.
Died: July 21, 2015.
Age at death: 16.
Cause of death: Traumatic injury, blood loss.
Location: Madison, Wisconsin, USA.
Disability: Angelman syndrome.

Details:
Maxwell’s father took him to a park and killed him by slitting his throat and shooting him with a nail gun. Then he killed himself.

Maxwell liked playing basketball.

Case status:
Theodore R. Peterson (Father), deceased.

Source:
Medical examiner: Father of Token Creek homicide victim has died
Son identified, father held in killing at Token Creek County Park

Anne Schmidt

No PhotoName: Anne Schmidt.
Died: July 5, 2015.
Age at death: 73.
Cause of death: Fire.
Location: Vineland, Ontario, Canada.
Disability: Unspecified; wheelchair user.

Details:
Police had been called to Anne Schmidt’s home because of a domestic disturbance. When they got there, they found that her son had poured gasoline all over the living room; and when an officer approached, Anne’s son ignited the gasoline. Anne was in a wheelchair and unable to escape the flames; she and her son both died. The police officer who had tried to help her was badly burned, but recovered.

Case status:
Karl Schmidt (Son), deceased.

Source:
Vineland explosion ruled murder-suicide
Officers hailed for ‘heroic efforts’ in Vineland explosion
NRPS officers heroic acts recognized by SIU
Obituary of Anne and Karl Schmidt
Long road ahead for burned police officer

Nicholas Richett

Photo of a teenage boy with short dark hair, light skin, and green eyes; his lips are parted, showing straight teeth.Name: Nicholas Richett.
Died: June 12, 2015.
Age at death: 20.
Cause of death: Gunshot.
Location: Melvindale, Michigan, USA.
Disability: Autism.

Details:
Nicholas’s father shot him and then killed himself.

Case status:
John Richett Jr. (Father), deceased.

Source:
Autism Memorial: Nicholas Richett
Statement on the murder of Nicholas Richett
Terminally ill man kills himself and autistic son
Melvindale cops say dad killed autistic son, himself
Nicholas Richett Obituary

Lorrie Rolen

Gravestone for Lorrie Ann Isom RollenName: Lorrie Ann Rolen.
Died: June 7, 2015.
Age at death: 53.
Cause of death: Head injury.
Location: Fittstown, Oklahoma, USA.
Disability: COPD; wheelchair user.

Details:
Lorrie’s death was declared a homicide, and her husband was charged with first-degree murder. The jury acquitted him because they decided that it could not be proved that her head injury had not come from a fall.

Case status:
Frinchey Dwain Rolen (Husband), charged with first-degree murder; acquitted; died May 9, 2021.

Source:
Husband on trial for Fittstown woman’s murder
Fittstown man arrested in connection with wife’s 2015 death
Oklahoma man arrested for wife’s murder two years after her death
Pontotoc County man arrested for wife’s murder
Authorities investigating woman’s death at home near Fittstown
Obituary for Frinchey Dewayne Rolen | Amy Stittsworth Funeral Service and Cremation Directors

Hiroko Ono

Photo of a plaque reading, "Hiroko Clare Ono, 8-8-1931 to 6-5-2015."Name: Hiroko Ono.
Died: June 5, 2015.
Age at death: 83.
Cause of death: Stabbed.
Location: Sacramento, California, USA.
Disability: Dementia.

Details:
Hiroko was allegedly stabbed to death by her husband.

Case status:
Masaharu Ono (Husband), charged with murder; released from jail into hospice care due to his bad health.

Source:
Documents: 92-year-old accused of killing wife near death in hospice care
Calif. man, 89, charged with murdering his wife: cops
Nonagenarian Accused of Killing Wife Said to Be Near Death

Courtney Liltz

Photo of Courtney Liltz, a young woman with short, curly brown hair and fair skin. She wears a Christmas sweater. Name: Courtney Liltz.
Died: June 5, 2015.
Age at death: 28.
Cause of death: Poisoning.
Location: Rolling Meadows, Illinois, USA.
Disability: Cerebral palsy.

Details:
As a baby, Courtney was put up for adoption, but her first adoptive placement failed, and instead she had to live in an institution for people with developmental disabilities. At five, she was adopted.

Courtney was a fan of Sesame Street‘s Ernie. She liked going to school and using the computers there.

Courtney’s adoptive mother poisoned her with an overdose of drugs. She died in the hospital nine days later.

The case was used as precedent for the trial of the killers of Alex Spourdalakis, who were both sentenced to four years and released on time served.

Case status:
Bonnie Liltz (Adoptive mother), pled guilty to involuntary manslaughter, sentenced to four years in prison, served 72 days before being released pending appeal; appeal rejected; died by suicide.

Source:
Illinois mom accused of killing daughter gets support
Friends support Schaumburg mom charged with disabled daughter’s death
Schaumburg Woman’s Sentence being determined in Daughter’s Death
Schaumburg mom gets four years in prison for killing disabled daughter
Schaumburg mom out on bond after serving 72 days for killing disabled daughter
Mother, godmother who killed autistic teen released from prison
Court Rules Against Bonnie Liltz During Appeal
Schaumburg mother ordered back to prison for disabled daughter’s death
Mom gets prison for killing disabled daughter
Mom Who Killed Disabled Daughter Loses Appeal To Drop 4-Year Sentence
Schaumburg woman who killed disabled daughter faces possible return to prison
Schaumburg mom appeals manslaughter sentence to state supreme court
4-year sentence stands for Schaumburg mom who killed disabled daughter
Bonnie Liltz on killing her daughter: ‘She stayed asleep’
Bonnie Liltz hopes Illinois governor will grant her clemency
Bonnie Liltz, woman who killed disabled daughter, commits suicide
Woman who killed disabled daughter found dead 2 days before prison stint was to begin
Schaumburg mom who killed disabled daughter found dead

Aiden Archer

Photo of Aidan Archer, a toddler with blue eyes and blond hair.Name: Aiden Archer.
Died: June 1, 2015
Age at death: 3.
Cause of death: Head trauma.
Location: Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA.
Disability: Autism.

Details:
Aiden was beaten to death by his mother’s boyfriend.

Case status:
Maurice Snyder (Mother’s boyfriend), pleaded no contest to second-degree reckless homicide and three counts of physical abuse of a child, sentenced to 24 years.
Megan Scott (Mother), charged with failure to act to prevent bodily harm to a child; died before trial.

Source:
Autism Memorial: Aidan Archer
Maurice Snyder Jr. now faces homicide charge in death of three-year-old Aiden Archer
Charged: Two accused in connection with death of three-year-old Aiden Archer
Vigil honors life of 3-year-old Milwaukee boy
Maurice Snyder sentenced to 24 years in prison for murder of 3-year-old Aiden Archer

Thenmozhi, Vasanthi, and Vasantha Kumar

No PhotoName: Thenmozhi.
Age at death: 18.
Disability: Malaikan (night blindness).

Name: Vasanthi.
Age at death: 16.
Disability: Mental illness; unspecified physical disability.

Name: Vasantha Kumar.
Age at death: 14.
Disability: Unspecified physical disability.

Died: May 27, 2015.
Cause of death: Poisoning.
Location: Markandeyapuram, Dindigul, India.

Details:
Sisters Thenmozhi and Vasanthi, and their brother Vasantha, were poisoned by their parents in a murder-suicide.

Case status:
Murugesan (Father), deceased.
Krishnaveni (Mother), deceased.

Source:
Dejected Couple Kill 3 Disabled Wards, Commit Suicide
Couple kill 3 children, hang themselves
Upset Couple Poisons 3 Ailing Kids to Death, Hang Selves
Couple poison to death 3 children, end lives

Emily Janzen

Photo of a young woman with pale skin and long, wavy brown hair, wearing a blue dress. She is smiling.Name: Emily Janzen.
Died: May 7, 2015.
Age at death: 19.
Cause of death: Gunshot.
Location: Rosedale, British Columbia, Canada.
Disability: Migraines, depression.

Details:
Emily and her family were shot by her father, who said he could not “watch his little girl hurt for one more second” before he killed Emily, then killed her mother Laurel and aunt to spare them the pain of hearing that Emily was dead, and then killed himself.

Emily was a music student who aspired to be an opera singer.

Case status:
Randy Janzen (Father), deceased.

Source:
Emily Janzen Remembered As ‘Amazing’ Singer After B.C. Triple Murder, Suicide

Mark Green

Photo of a middle-aged man with brown skin, a black durag on his head, wearing a loose gray T-shirt and jeans. Name: Mark Anthony Green.
Died: March 19, 2015.
Age at death: 56.
Cause of death: Gunshot.
Location: Knoxville, Maryland, USA.
Disability: Intellectual disability.

Details:
Mark was shot by his father in a double homicide-suicide. Mark’s mother, 86-year-old Mary Green, was the other victim.

Mark was an avid cyclist who could usually be found riding his bicycle around the neighborhood.

Case status:
Johnnie Green (Father), deceased.

Source:
3 dead after Knoxville, Md. double murder-suicide
Mark Anthony Green