AL - Shanieka, 11, Latricia, 9, & Christopher Ward, 8, starved to death, Jan 2005

[amandab]

http://www.cnn.com/2005/US/02/05/alabama.killings/index.html

What the h**l is wrong with people??!?!?!!?! :furious: :furious: :furious: :banghead:

 

[WasBlind]

Woman charged with capital murder in deaths of 2 girls, boy
Sunday, February 06, 2005
By STEVE DOYLE
Times Staff Writer, [email protected]
Three children found dead in a southwest Huntsville apartment with no electricity were intentionally starved to death by their mother, police say.

Huntsville police spokesman Wendell Johnson said Saturday that Natashay Y. Ward, 33, confessed to detectives Friday night and was charged with capital murder. If convicted, she could be sentenced to death by lethal injection or life in prison without parole.

Johnson said Ward's children - Shanieka, 11; Latrica, 9; and Christopher, 8 - appeared malnourished. Police won't know exactly when or how they died until autopsies are complete, he said.

All three children were students at Ridgecrest Elementary School, a short walk from their $399-a-month apartment off Patton Road. But they never returned to classes after Christmas break.

Shanieka was a precocious fifth-grader who would have moved on to middle school next fall.

Latrica was on the honor roll and made friends easily.

Christopher got invited to a picnic for low-income kids at Brahan Spring Park last summer but decided to stay home with his mom instead.

More here

Prayers for justice, Lanie

 

[nanandjim]

Yep, just as I suspected, she looks like a stuffed pig. How disgusting. I hope that her sentence is to starve her to death. Of course, it looks like it may take a year or two for her to die.

Sorry, but stories about abuse to innocent children upset me greatly.

 

[max]

Maybe she is a crack and was selling her food stamps to buy crack. Some people would describe her as an animal....she is worse than an animal because an animal would not starve it's young. What is the profile for a person that would starve it's own young? Sick, obviously but, WHY? She disgusts me and makes me angry and sad.

 

[princessmer81]

This woman must be seriously mentally ill. I don't even want to imagine the hell that those children went through before they died. Where is the family? Why wouldn't the neighborhs have heard the children's cry for food? Why didn't human services come back with the police and force entry if she wouldn't let them in? I don't understand cases like this - they are so avoidable.

 

[concernedperson]

This woman must be seriously mentally ill. I don't even want to imagine the hell that those children went through before they died. Where is the family? Why wouldn't the neighborhs have heard the children's cry for food? Why didn't human services come back with the police and force entry if she wouldn't let them in? I don't understand cases like this - they are so avoidable.

Yes, they are avoidable. But the law prevents human services from breaking down the door and without probable cause the police can't do anything. Ties that bind.

The real responsibility lies with family that know something is wrong and refuse/deny the situation. If this woman was mentally incompetent surely this would not have gone unnoticed by someone close to the family or the family itself. Not wanting to get your hands dirty has ruined many people's lives especially young children who often can't speak for themselves. It takes a while to die of starvation....someone was looking the other way. Mental instability/personality disorder whatever the situation, children died and someone was aware and someone was to blame.....not the children!!

 

[BirdieBoo]

It sounds to me that they were locked in seperate rooms and denied water as well as food. Being without water will kill someone a lot faster than going without food. This woman is sick! :furious:

 

[englishleigh]

Poor little angels...don't worry...they are now feasting with Jesus at His table. This sorry excuse for a human being, their mother, should be starved to death as her punishment.

 

[concernedperson]

Poor little angels...don't worry...they are now feasting with Jesus at His table. This sorry excuse for a human being, their mother, should be starved to death as her punishment.

I think we all feel the same way. These children didn't deserve this fate no matter who was incompetent. Little angels up above to help others who could have this happen to them.But I still want them to know that they were importent and others were thinking about them.

Jilly, if you are with them please help them to transcend. Will see you soon.

 

[princessmer81]

Yes, they are avoidable. But the law prevents human services from breaking down the door and without probable cause the police can't do anything. Ties that bind.

The real responsibility lies with family that know something is wrong and refuse/deny the situation. If this woman was mentally incompetent surely this would not have gone unnoticed by someone close to the family or the family itself. Not wanting to get your hands dirty has ruined many people's lives especially young children who often can't speak for themselves. It takes a while to die of starvation....someone was looking the other way. Mental instability/personality disorder whatever the situation, children died and someone was aware and someone was to blame.....not the children!!

Did you think that I was saying that the children were to blame? That's how I interpredted your post - I hope I am wrong though. Anyway, I certainly don't thing that the children were at all to blame. Unfortunately the "system" and their family totally failed them.

 

[concernedperson]

Did you think that I was saying that the children were to blame? That's how I interpredted your post - I hope I am wrong though. Anyway, I certainly don't thing that the children were at all to blame. Unfortunately the "system" and their family totally failed them.

No, no, no. I was interperting the system as a whole. Sometime inflections on typed words don't express how you really feel. What I was saying is someone knew but didn't come forward for whatever reasons.Good lord, we know it wasn't the children faults. Someone failed them.

 

[princessmer81]

No, no, no. I was interperting the system as a whole. Sometime inflections on typed words don't express how you really feel. What I was saying is someone knew but didn't come forward for whatever reasons.Good lord, we know it wasn't the children faults. Someone failed them.

Phew! I hoped I wasn't coming off as a moster. :blushing:

 

[LovelyPigeon]

Obviously this woman's family and Social Services were made aware that something was terribly wrong with the family when the mother refused to open the door to anyone. The children hadn't returned to school, the utilities had been cut off inside the apartment, and the family was about to be evicted, yet Social Services walked away without police intervention.

The mother obviously wasn't capable of taking care of her children before they died, yet nothing was done when a knocks on the door by authorities were ignored.

This looks like a case of If Onlies...

 

[Timex]

If only this woman hadnt been so selfishly cruel...

Thats the only "if only" that really matters IMO. The blame falls on her, no one else.

 

[ariel7]

Poor little angels...don't worry...they are now feasting with Jesus at His table. This sorry excuse for a human being, their mother, should be starved to death as her punishment.

Amen!

 

[CyberLaw]

Apparently I read in another story that the school officials had come to the door, to inquire as to why the children were not in school.

She refused entry to everyone, and unless you have probable cause and you know the children are in trouble, you cannot force entry. I may be wrong, but I don't think so. If I am, please corect me.

You might suspect something is wrong, but that is only suspicion, not probable cause.

I just can't fathom anyone harming their children, not in a million years, deliberatly. Beyond my comphrension. But it happens way too often. Horror stories abound,

Too many people turn a blind eye when it comes to the abuse of children. How they can sleep at night, is beyond me.

 

[MistyGirl]

This is the saddest sickest thing I have ever heard this woman makes my skin crawl.

I am very suprised that Social Services, the County or LE did not get the apporproiate permission to open that apartment door. WE adults, nieghbors, teachers, Police Officers family and friends have an obligation to the children of this world and that is to PROTECT them and not HARM them. I am sorry but if children do not return to school aftr winter break and the school can not reach the parent or get them to open a door WHAT MORE PORBABLE CAUSE IS NEEDED TO GET A JUDGE OR ANYONE TO BREAK THAT DOOR DOWN AND MAKE SURE THE CHILDREN ARE OK???? I am telling you if I were her neighbor and I had not seen those three children in a few days court order or not I would have broke the door down. Sorry, I too have huge issues with people who harm children. These 3 sweet children did not ask to be brought into this world and for them to have died such a horrible death just brings tears to my eyes. How very sad for them my heart is breaking. So sad that these children did not have enough people that loved and cared for them in their life to protect them from harms way.

Misty

 

[Jeana (DP)]

Misty, I agree with you, but I think this may have been a lifelong problem in this home. My two youngest are 11 and 10 (the age of two these children who died). I feel pretty comfortable telling you (and believing it myself) that my kids would most likely throw furniture through their bedroom windows to get the hell out of my house if they weren't being fed or had no water to drink. What I'm getting at is that these children must have been systematically abused during their entire lifetimes to NOT act out in the first days of being locked in their bedrooms.

 

[MistyGirl]

Children not returning to school and being out for over a week and the Mother not cooperating with school, family or LE to me is PROBALE CAUSE!!! What does there have to be the smell of them rottening away locked their bedrooms before someone will get involved??????? Then it's too late.

It is required by law that chidren attend school. My daughter was out sick for 2 days I forgot to call into school the school was all over my butt to call in and have a doctors note or they would have to follow up with social service as I would be in violation of not having her attned school. I had no problem with providing the documention and has glad they called me on it and said "hey why isn't so and so in school, we need to call the day she is absent and proof or will take further action."

I am so angry about this case.

 

[MistyGirl]

Misty, I agree with you, but I think this may have been a lifelong problem in this home. My two youngest are 11 and 10 (the age of two these children who died). I feel pretty comfortable telling you (and believing it myself) that my kids would most likely throw furniture through their bedroom windows to get the hell out of my house if they weren't being fed or had no water to drink. What I'm getting at is that these children must have been systematically abused during their entire lifetimes to NOT act out in the first days of being locked in their bedrooms.

Jeana - I agree that is what is the saddest part of this all....they had no family or teachers or neighbors that saw what was going on right under their noses to help these children. That breaks my heart. I can tell you my mother came over once and my daughter had dirty socks on and I got a lecture from my mother that you would not beleive....LOL don't mess with her grand-daughter. It make me sad to think that there was not one G-Parent, Father, Aunt or Uncle that could not have helped these poor children. What a sad, lonely scary and short life they must have lived so unfair.

Misty