Sunday, December 1, 2013

Madelyn Clifton

Madelyn Rae Clifton
June 17, 1990 - November 3, 1998
Madelyn "Maddie" was born on June 17, 1990. She was a happy little girl who had many friends. One day she went over to her fourteen year old neighbor's house. He and Maddie had played many times before.
The two were playing baseball when her neighbor, Josh Phillips, accidentally hit her in the head with the ball. Josh carried Maddie into his house and put her on the floor. She started to make noise and cry. Josh was afraid of what his father would do if he saw that he had let Maddie into the house, and he was afraid of getting in trouble for hurting her.
Maddie kept screaming and crying. In a panic, he beat her with a baseball bat and stabbed her several times. He then hid her body under his bed. Josh had no previous record of any violence whatsoever. Madelyn was reported missing, but no one ever suspected that her fourteen year old neighbor and friend had anything to do with it, until his mother came into his room about a week after her death and saw something oozing from under her son's bed. He was at school at the time. His mother lifted the bed and discovered Maddie's body. She immediately called the police. Josh was interviewed later saying that he lived in a fantasy world afterwards and just ignored Maddie's body under his bed, even taking flashlights outside to go and look for her. He admitted that he wanted to take his actions back, but it was too late. He was sentenced to life without parole for murdering Maddie.

Saturday, November 30, 2013

Juliette Geurts

Juliette Serenity Geurts
November 2, 2005 - July 11, 2008
Juliette Serenity Geurts was born on November 2, 2005, along with her twin sister, Jaelyn. Their parents were Charyse and Casey Geurts. The two got married shortly after the girls were born, but separated soon afterwards. Casey enrolled in the army while Charyse began dating a man named Dustin Chauncey. She let Dustin and his friend, Brandon Townsend, move in with her, Jaelyn, and Juliette.
The day before Juliette passed, she, her sister, her mother, Dustin, and Brandon all spent their day at the annual Oregon Trail Days. At 3:00 a.m. the next day, Charyse and Dustin took Juliette to the emergency room, saying that they had seen her have a seizure and that she had a fever. 
Around 4:00 a.m., Juliette was sent home and her caregivers were instructed to monitor her closely. Charyse put Juliette to bed and took a sleeping pill. About eight hours later, Charyse said she woke up to find Juliette in her crib, not breathing.
Jaelyn and Juliette. Juliette is on the right.
It was almost noon when Charyse went to her neighbor's house to call 9-1-1. The medical professionals arrived. Juliette was pronounced dead, and it was found that she had been dead for several hours.
 Juliette's autopsy revealed that she died from multiple blunt force trauma wounds, but the four inch laceration to her liver was the final blow that killed her.

Monday, November 25, 2013

Lily Furneaux-Wolfenbarger

Lily Lynette Furneaux-Wolfenbarger
May 14, 2008 - November 20, 2010
Lily Lynette Furneaux Wolfenbarger was born on May 14, 2008 to Lauren Furneaux and Jeff Wolfenbarger. Her parents had a short relationship and were never married. They had their first custody hearing for Lily when she was three months old. By this time, Jeff had married a woman named Renee King, who he had known since high school.
The judge believed that joint custody would be best, though many people believed that Lily was too young for joint custody at only three months old. Lauren and Jeff lived an hour away, and they didn't particularly get along. It was also said that when Lauren had custody of Lily, she spent every moment with her, but that when Jeff was taking care of her, he often left her in the care of other people.
Lily was a happy little girl who loved to sing and dance. Her favorite music was from the show "Glee". Lily spent most of her time with her mother, but she visited her father, and her step-mother, Renee King. Her step-mother had three children of her own.
In the spring of 2010, Lauren and her parents, Frederick "Chico" and Lynette Furneaux, had suspicions that Lily was being physically abused. Lily had a mark on her neck, and what looked like a black eye, however, Jeff and Renee made excuses for these. The family hired an investigator who made documents of all of Lily's injuries, though it was said that there wasn't enough evidence.
Family members reported that Lily often came home from visits with Jeff and Rene with bruises. Her mother said that she often came home very upset and acted very clingy. On one occasion, Lily told her mother that she didn't want to go for a visit with her father and step-mother.
This occasion, when Lily didn't want to visit her father, was the last time her mother would ever see Lily. Around 2:00 p.m., Renee King called 9-1-1 saying that Lily was unresponsive. She had been home alone with Lily and said that after having a bath, Lily fell out of her arms. Later, her story changed.
Lily was rushed to the hospital, but she had already died by the time she got there. A medical examiner found that Lily had died due to blunt force trauma to her head. There were also signs of sexual assault. Renee King was sentenced to life in prison for Lily's sexual assault and murder.


Saturday, November 23, 2013

Erin Attel

Erin Michelle Attel
January 22, 2007 - April 15, 2012
Erin Michelle Attel was born on January 22, 2007 to Edward and Monica Attel. She had an older brother named Shaun. In September of 2011, Erin went to a doctor's visit. Her parents expected normal results, however, they were stunned with horrible news. It was discovered that Erin had a tumor on her brain stem.
The location of Erin's tumor made it inoperable, and there were very few treatment options. Erin began a form of treatment, which affected her appearance, but not her spirit. She was still a giggling and happy little girl, up until about a month after her diagnosis. Then, her health began deteriorating. 
In April, Erin died peacefully and surrounded by love.

Vada Schoon

Vada Jolene Schoon
January 30, 2003 - June 7, 2006
Vada Jolene Schoon was born on January 30, 2003. On June 7, 2006, everything seemed just like every other day. Vada's father left to go to work, and Vada's mother left her in the house while she went to move the car from the street into their driveway. Upon parking the car, Vada's mother saw that it wasn't straight. She shifted it into reverse to straighten the wheels, carefully checking her mirrors and her blindspots. She had no way of knowing that Vada had let herself out of the house and was standing right behind the car, where no one would be able to see her since she was so, so small.
When Vada's mother got out of the car, she saw her three year old daughter lying on the ground, fatally wounded. Medical technicians were called and Vada was treated on scene for her injuries, and then taken to the hospital where she was pronounced dead.

Wednesday, November 20, 2013

Sydney Angle

Sydney Marie Angle
April 15, 2004 - May 20, 2013
Sydney Marie Angle was born on April 15, 2004. She lived in Oklahoma and she loved playing softball more than anything. Sydney was at her school, Plaza Towers elementary, when a tornado hit, and killed her and nine other children.

Tuesday, November 19, 2013

Jaclyn Marie Dowaliby

Jaclyn Marie Dowaliby
May 17, 1981 - September 10, 1988
Jaclyn was born on May 17, 1981 to David and Cynthia Dowaliby. In the summer of 1988, David and Cynthia's worst nightmares came true when their seven year old daughter, Jaclyn, disappeared from her own bedroom. They didn't hear anything that night, nor did they see anything out of the ordinary. The next morning, Jaclyn's mother reported her missing and suggested that she may have been abducted, though it was uncertain. Early in the investigation, however, it was found that it was unlikely that Jaclyn wandered out on her own, and that it was nearly certain that she was abducted. A broken window was found, but it may not have been the entryway as later, Jaclyn's father recalled leaving the back door open. For five days, no signs of Jaclyn were found. After five days of searching, Jaclyn's body was found in an abandoned dump site that was six miles away from her home. An autopsy revealed that Jaclyn was killed the same night that she had been abducted. Though her parents were originally charged in Jaclyn's death, there was little to no evidence against them, so Jaclyn's murder is still unsolved.

Lillian Entwistle

Lillian Rose "Lilly" Entwistle
April 9, 2005 - January 20, 2006
Lillian "Lilly", was born on April 9, 2005 to Neil and Rachel Entwistle. They lived in a rented house for ten days before tragedy struck. The bodies of Rachel and Lilly were found in their home. Rachel was twenty seven years old, and Lilly was nine months old.
The autopsies showed that Rachel died from a bullet wound to her head, and Lilly died from a bullet wound to her stomach. Just hours after he killed his wife and daughter, Neil had purchased a one way ticket to London and left at 8:15 a.m. When the bodies were found, Neil claimed that when he left his home three days earlier to run an errand, Rachel and Lilly were alive and healthy, and that when he came home and found their bodies, he was so distraught that he fled.
The police were suspicious of his leaving right after he found the bodies, and of the fact that his DNA was found on the gun that killed Rachel and Lilly. It was also revealed that a few days before, someone had searched "how to kill people" on the computer. Eventually, Neil was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole.

Sunday, November 17, 2013

Sofia Rojas

Sofia Alondra Rojas
September 11, 2009 - July 3, 2010
Sofia Alondra Rojas was born on September 11, 2009.When she was just eight months old, she passed away after being stabbed to death by her father, Pedro Rojas-Martinez. He also stabbed his wife, and his other child, but they survived. He had done this because he walked in on his wife and another man. After the man his wife was with left, he argued and eventually stabbed her, then went into his childrens' room. He stabbed his 22-month old son, and then his eight month old daughter, Sofia. Sofia didn't survive. 

Saturday, November 16, 2013

Sarah Chavez

Sarah Angelina Chavez
December 5, 2002 - October 11, 2005
Sarah Angelina Chavez was born on December 5, 2005 to Sophia Chavez. As a newborn, Vicodin was detected in her system, and at only two days old, a case worker had opened a file for her, though her case wasn't ever followed up. Life with Sarah's mother was hectic. About a month after Sarah turned two years old, her mother took narcotics while pregnant with another child. She called 911 and informed them that she had had a miscarriage in her home. Paramedics discovered a stillborn baby in the toilet when they arrived at her home.
Sarah was nowhere to be found. Social workers feared that something happened to her, and they finally located her in the care of her great-aunt, Frances Abundis. Unfortunately, when they arrived at Frances' home, they found Sarah with a cut on her nose and two bruised eyes. Sophia was determined to be an unfit parent, so social workers placed Sarah in protective custody. 
Sarah was placed with two women named Dianne Hardy-Garcia and Corri Planck. The women had been checked and went through many procedures to be sure that they could properly care for Sarah. Dianne and Corri loved Sarah from the moment they saw her. Dianne recalled that Sarah had chocolate on her face and a candy cane in her mouth. She remembered that she brought Sarah a little teddy bear, and Sarah had jumped into her arms when they met.
Dianne and Corri provided Sarah with her own room, own toys, and own books. She even had a schnauzer dog who would sleep outside her door at night. Corri and Dianne would hang up the artwork that Sarah made at her day care. They were proud and happy parents, but they could tell that Sarah had been exposed to violence. 
Corri and Dianne were alarmed when they discovered that Sarah had horrible nightmares and the fact that she knew how to choke with both of her hands. At two years old, Sarah also cursed. They also noticed signs that Sarah had also been sexually abused. They continuously addressed this issue to the social workers and asked that a medical examination be performed to see if Sarah had been sexually abused, but this was never followed through by the social workers. Dianne and Corri worried that the social workers were not taking the concerns seriously.
Sarah was required to have weekly visitations with her mother and her great-aunt, who was also her godmother. While her mother was often late, and at times, didn't show up at all, her great-aunt was always present. What Corri and Dianne weren't aware of was the fact that Sophia was angry about the fact that Sarah was being raised by a same-gender couple, and that she was fighting to get Sarah back. While Sophia was deemed unfit to parent, her great-aunt, Frances, was not. Frances continued fighting for the custody of Sarah.
In April of 2005, Corri and Dianne were given one hour to pack Sarah's things and say goodbye to her before she was returned to Frances. The judge sent Sarah back to her great-aunt with no proper check to be sure that it was a safe and stable environment. When Corri and Dianne were packing Sarah's things, she continuously took the items back out of her bag and into her drawers and told them "No!". Corri was convinced that they would read in the newspaper someday that Sarah had been abused to death. Dianne refused to accept this awful thought in her mind.
In the home of Frances, Sarah was reunited with her five year old cousin who went by "AJ". Sophia continued to rarely visit her daughter. The social worker who noticed Sarah doing well in the home of Corri and Dianne now noticed Sarah doing poorly. AJ witnessed Frances' husband, Armando Abundis, take Sarah into a room and close the door. He claimed that he could hear her screaming when they were inside.
On October 10, 2005, Sarah was taken to the hospital because her arm was severely fractured above her elbow. A piece of jagged bone kept Sarah's arm disconnected and hanging at her side. This can be seen on the hospital's surveillance video. Frances waited four hours before she left without Sarah ever seeing a doctor or getting her injuries treated. It was later known that her arm wasn't only fractured, but that she had multiple internal injuries too.
Just seven hours after her hospital visit, Sarah was dead. She died of blunt force trauma to the abdomen. Armando was found guilty of assaulting a child under eight years of age. He was found not guilty on his murder count, and guilty for child abuse. Frances was released from jail after pleading no contest to acting as an accessory after the fact and to felony marijuana possession.