01 – Disability Day of Mourning

Keith Theriot

Photo of a middle-aged man with a gray beard and light-brown skin, wearing a camo baseball cap. Name: Keith Theriot.
Died: January 26, 2019.
Age at death: 50.
Cause of death: Gunshot.
Location: Ascension Parish, Louisiana, USA.
Disability: Unspecified; disabled veteran.

Details:
Keith had kicked his son out of his trailer, so the son went to live with his girlfriend. Two weeks later, he allegedly killed his girlfriend, her father, and her younger brother before driving to his parents’ house and shooting Keith and his wife Elizabeth. Keith survived long enough to tell police that it was his son who had shot him.

Keith played the guitar.

Case status:
Dakota Theriot (Son), pleaded guilty to five counts of murder, sentenced to life without parole.

Source:
Dakota Theriot pleads guilty in deadly shooting spree; receives life sentence
Dakota Theriot, accused of killing five, faces the death penalty. Coronavirus may delay his trial
Louisiana murder suspect caught at grandma’s Virginia home
‘My babies died for nothing’: Louisiana shooting that killed 5 leaves family broken

Michael Keene

Name: Michael Keene.
Died: November 30, 2018.
Age at death: 51.
Cause of death: Stabbed.
Location: Hartford, Connecticut, USA.
Disability: Unspecified; work-related injury.

Details:
Michael was stabbed to death and his body stashed in a container for some days before he was found.

He was a retired construction worker who had lived in Florida, and was known for helping people put up storm shutters before hurricanes.

Case status:
Jessica Keene (Daughter), charged with first-degree murder.
Quahzier Bouie (Daughter’s boyfriend), charged with murder, conspiracy to commit murder and tampering with evidence.

Source:
Man rejects plea deal in Windsor Locks murder case
Daughter charged with Windsor Locks man’s murder
Windsor Locks woman, seven-months pregnant, said fatal stabbing of father was self-defense – Hartford Courant
New details emerge in alleged Windsor Locks murder

Austin Steele

Portrait photo of Austin Steele, a young man with brown hair and fair skin, wearing a black suit and tie. Name: Austin Steele.
Died: March 1, 2018.
Age at death: 18.
Cause of death: Gunshot.
Location: Lancaster, South Carolina, USA.
Disability: Autism.

Details:
After his grandfather died, Austin moved in with a caretaker. At 18, he moved out, though he would often call his caretaker–sometimes in the middle of the night–to ask for a hug.

Austin was an independent young man. He would take weeks-long trips to the beach on his moped. He was enrolled in GED classes, and he wanted to join the military and become an engineer.

Two months after he allowed a man and his wife to move into his mobile home with him, his body was found. Austin may have been killed because he had become involved romantically with one or both of the couple; or the 30-year-old man, who was a registered sex offender, may have been abusing him.

The man had shot him, left him to die overnight, and with the help of his wife, dismembered, burned, and dumped his body.

Case status:
Christopher Allen Holford (Housemate), pleaded guilty to murder and possession of a weapon during a violent crime, sentenced to 50-60 years.
Brandy Nicole Faye Duncan (Housemate), convicted of accessory after the fact to murder, sentenced to 2-12 years.

Source:
Autistic SC teen who was burned, dismembered ‘knew he was loved’
LANCASTER HOMICIDE: Family seeks justice for teen’s death in Lancaster County
Lancaster autistic teen, killed in ‘haunting’ case, remembered as ‘kind, caring’
‘One of the worst cases’: Body of Lancaster man, 18, burned and dismembered; 2 charged
New details in Austin Steele murder
SC newlyweds charged in connection with murder, dismembering teen’s body
Human remains found as Lancaster Co. deputies investigate homicide
Couple Charged After An 18-Year-Old’s Dismembered Remains Were Found On Lancaster Property
Autism Memorial: Austin Steele

Michelle Stewart

Name: Michelle Stewart.
Died: November 14, 2008.
Age at death: 17.
Cause of death: Stabbed.
Location: Drongan, East Ayrshire, Scotland.
Disability: Club feet.

Details:
Michelle had a boyfriend, but broke up with him because she wanted to go to university.

Michelle’s ex-boyfriend killed her with a knife. She died in her mother’s arms.

Case status:
John Wilson (Ex-boyfriend), convicted of murder, sentenced to 12 years to life; granted community release after he served 9 years.

Source:
Fury as killer gets out after just 9 years
Father of Ayrshire girl, 17, hacked to death in bloodbath horror furious as killer to get home leave after serving just NINE years
Murder victim’s father demands justice system reform
Call for justice reform as Michelle Stewart’s killer gets out
Expert claims it’s ‘extremely unlikely’ killer who hacked Ayrshire girl, 17, to death will be allowed to step foot in victim’s family neighbourhood