His foster mother, Hannah Overton, was charged with capital murder, vilified from all quarters, and sent to prison for life. My husband, Tom, and I were deeply saddened to hear of Dabney's sudden passing. He defecated on the floor of his bedroom, then smeared feces on the bed, the dresser, and the walls. This is where Andrew used to sleep, Isaac told me softly as he led me into the boys room. When Andrew started breathing funny, she told Hess, she had administered asthma medication with a nebulizer, hoping to open up his airways. Yet the jury had never heard from him. All NRE reports represent a moment in time. Hess became exasperated. Receive obituaries from the city or cities of your choice. Dabney was one of those people that are angels without wings. We spoke last Tuesday about a biking trip we had plan in the spring to Cherokee,N.C. Skip to main content. Then District Attorney Mark Skurka dropped the case. The physician only said that the scratch marks he had noticed on the boys neck had been caused, he believed, by another person. In 2007, Hannah Overton was sentenced to life in prison for the death of her 4-year-old foster son. Hannahs father was the Reverend Bennie Saenz, an evangelical preacher in Corpus Christi whose fall from grace profoundly altered the course of her childhood. God bless you Dabney, we'll miss you. They get to see her for two hours, once a monthtwenty-four hours in a year, Larry said. Gemma Mitchell, a phlebotomist, recalled overhearing Hannah tell medical staff that Andrew had stopped breathing after he was punished. No one could corroborate her story, and under cross-examination, she admitted that she had never told anyone this fact until taking the stand. Overwhelmed, the Overtons sought guidance in prayer. He picked at mosquito bites on his body incessantly, prompting Larry to put socks on his hands; still, Andrew would not stop scratching and eventually developed a staph infection on his arm. The burden on the state to prove its case beyond a reasonable doubt was, Gilmore told me, perhaps less than it should have been. You can send your sympathy in the guestbook provided and share it with the family. Larry and Hannah were granted supervised visits. Hannah: i was and remain so sorry to hear about Dabney's unfortunate death. Skurka ended up dropping the new case against her in 2015 but Overton remained in legal limbo until Gonzalez officially declared her innocence last year, thus closing a significant chapter on this decade-long case. She and her family do so much good with nothing. -- Murder charges against Hannah Overton, a south Texas mother of five who had been convicted in the 2007 salt poisoning trial in the death of her foster son, have been dismissed by the district attorney. We report on vital issues from politics to education and are the indispensable authority on the Texas scene, covering everything from music to cultural events with insightful recommendations. An Unforgettable Texas Tale of Envy, Embezzlement, and Fruitcake, How the Texas Rangers Became One of the Most Powerful Forces in the State. We were just waiting for someone to look at it and say this is just an accident, Larry Overton added. Echovita Inc is a registered trademark. We shared wonderful times together as we mused over Rumi and different flavor ice creams. I plan their birthday parties from here, she told me. I'm so saddened to here the news but I know that Dabney is walking his dogs in the park right now in another very special place. After a week-long trial, he was convicted of murder and sentenced to 23 years in prison. Inside the Bro-tastic Party Mansions Upending a Historic Austin Community, The Campaign to Sabotage Texass Public Schools. He will be greatly missed by all who knew him. I have mitigating testimony that I think would have been very useful to your client, he said in a voice mail he left for Gilmore. Orr forwarded the paperwork to a leading expert on salt poisoning, Michael Moritz, and asked him to explain its significance. The world was a better place because of him. Despite Eastwoods zeal, there were still basic questions that the prosecution could not explain. As the verdict was read, Hannah looked horror-struck. More:Hannah Overton, family celebrate her pregnancy months after she's declared innocent in boy's death. Had Andrew sat among them, I realized, he would have been nine years old. Two years later, the Overtons learned that their adoption application had been approved and that Andrew would be joining their family. CPR had also been performed for an extended period by Hannah and later by medical personnel, who had squeezed the boys nose and administered chest compressions for 35 minutes. Every Saturday for the past several years, Larry has ridden his motorcycle from Corpus Christi to the Murray Unit, the maximum-security womens prison west of Waco where Hannah is incarcerated: a squat, concrete building walled off from the world with cyclone fencing and coils of razor wire. You can ask, Why didnt she go to the hospital sooner? but in hindsight, everything is obvious. To never have been producedit was very strange.. Daniel Vaughn is the countrys first barbecue editor, and he has eaten more barbecue than you have. For the most accurate data, please search on the Detailed View page. My prayers to the family. Your family will be in my thoughts and prayers. a few minutes before we actually took him in, she testified. The following day, family court judge Carl Lewis awarded temporary custody to Hannahs mother and stepfather. The cause of death was determined to be salt poisoning, an extremely rare occurrence that, in children, results from either a child inadvertently ingesting too much salt or a caretaker deliberately forcing the child to do so. Dabney was born on July 31, 1963 and grew up in Essex County, Va. Despite appearances, however, he was hardly a reprobate. She had studied years earlier to be an EMT, she explained, and although she had never worked as a paramedic, she had felt confident in her training. (Larrys parents, who were friends of the Saenzes, were parishioners.) Rather than let him remain in his wheelchair most of the day, as previous caretakers had done, Hannah kept him moving; she took him into his familys pool to stretch and used massage to loosen his contracted muscles. Search by Name. Against the backdrop of possible abuse, authorities wasted little time. Leave your condolences to the family on this memorial page or send flowers to show you care. . It was later believed the boy suffered a rare medical condition called hypernatremia, which can cause fatal sodium levels in the body. Benign conditions and life-threatening conditions look the same in the beginning, he said. He was good to everyone he met. Death, Burial, Cemetery & Obituaries Search; Sponsored by Ancestry. Alton Lewis Overton, age 66, of Bryant; passed away Wednesday March 7, 2007. I am over the moon that Hannah has been granted compensation by Texas for her wrongful imprisonment, Orr told ABC News. The intentional poisoning of a child is usually perpetrated with sedatives, anticonvulsants, or medications like injectable insulin, not food, he told me. OBITUARY - HANNAH OVERTON (HUNTINGDONSHIRE) Bowls England regrets to inform you that former Women's Junior International captain Hannah Overton passed away on 23rd December at the age of 28, after. "I could never thank my attorneys enough for fighting endlessly to prove my innocence and bring me home," she said. 3 Memories Hannah Overton Overton Hannah Jayne Passed away peacefully at Thorpe Hall on the 23rd December 2018 aged 28 years. The mood in the car was giddy; the kids were excitedly discussing the news that they would have a baby sister when Larry, distracted, ran a stop sign and collided with another car. When I first learned Andrew had died, I was angry, he explained to me. Knowing Hannah, it was inconceivable that she would ever hurt a child, said Noreen. Because he was vomiting? If you need legal advice, then retain an attorney to discuss the facts of your case. Theres An App for That. The jury found that Mrs. Overton failed to procure medical care within a reasonable time frame, she wrote in an affidavit that was later filed with Hannahs appeal. On several occasions his fits had grown so extreme that she had resorted to asking a male parishioner to physically remove him from the classroom until he could regain self-control. Dabney will be missed by so many. He called Hannah and Larry Mommy and Daddy, and he followed Larry everywhere he went, often stepping on Larrys heels as he trailed after him. So I got to see that.. Fleeing for Your Life? His tantrums grew longer and more extreme, and he often banged his head against the floor. I believe that the same God who made him is with him now in the most immediate sense. The Overtons were returning from a visit to the obstetricians office, where they had brought the children to find out whether the baby they were expecting was a boy or a girl. But at a hearing on the defenses motion for a new trial, Eastwood stated under oath that Cortes had always been a passionate advocate for the prosecution; he had even remarked to her that he thought Hannah should fry. Cortes does not dispute that story. I am so sorry to hear of Dabney's sudden passing. He has carried us through.". Andrew was not a normal child, Cortes explained to me. Much loved daughter of Andrew and Susan, dearly loved sister of. The marks could be consistent with many things, including a fight, an altercation, someone trying to hold this childs neck forcefully, he said. I pray that you will bring Mom home soon.. "I'm very thankful that this compensation is finally coming through," Overton told ABC News. Patricia Sharpe writes a regular restaurant column, Pats Pick, for Texas Monthly. Sign . I feel so fortunate to have spent time with him. Overton was released on bond in December 2014 after a Texas appellate court overturned her conviction and life sentence. Larry hurried home to help, but Andrew, who had been vomiting, only grew worse. I was assured that they would be seeking lesser charges. During the trial, he said, I sat at the courthouse for five days, waiting to testify. 1 x 120' / Produced for Discovery Networks. It was very tense. A unique and lasting tribute for a loved one. Hannahs supporters included a young churchgoer named Dawn Werkhoven, who had lived with the Overtons the year leading up to Andrews death. But former Nueces County District Attorney Mark Skurka charged Overton a second time for murder after her release. I realized that it was something serious . For us to go to [the clinic] was a lot faster than it would have been had we called, at that point., As we talked about Andrew, she had to stop several times to compose herself. I wish his family well. Pam Rooker. The writ is the final opportunity a defendant has to introduce new evidence into the record. And we do have some evidence of bruising to his nose [which could indicate] his nostrils were squeezed and he was made to drink it.. Short on time as the trial drew to a close, the defense had asked Moritzwho needed to return to Pittsburghto sit for a videotaped deposition; when the deposition ran long and could not be completed, the defense was unable to enter it as testimony. Disclaimer: We created this website to give you general information about a variety of criminal offenses and possible defenses that might apply to those charges. Reaching for his shoes, he announced, I can do all things. Larry remembered, We felt like we were really making headway with him.. Anne Turner Overton Haile died peacefully at home in Portland, Oregon on December 7, 2021. Then he asked for more. My sons in high school now. He felt at ease around her; his favorite thing to do was sit on her lap and rest his mouth on her cheek, and she gladly obliged. Push him? Throughout the interrogation, which spanned more than two hours, Hannah insisted that she had never harmed Andrew. I was just trying to fix itto do anything I could to fix my baby, she said. City Employees Are Heading for the Exits. He was predeceased by : his parents, Theodore Roosevelt 'Jack' and Annie Overton of Washington; and his wife Claudia Cotten. Hey dear, so sorry to hear this newstake care of yourself and your familythinking of you!! All he needs is lots of love and attention, she told Larry. Its free. . A more thorough investigation would have uncovered ample evidence to suggest that Andrew had an undiagnosed eating disorder, raising the possibility that he had unintentionally consumed too much salt on his own. Share Obituary. That Sunday, October 1, Larry took the other kids to church while Hannah devoted some extra attention to Andrew. that he had unrestricted access to water. Given these facts, he explained, There is not a single piece of evidence which suggests that Hannah Overton salt-poisoned Andrew. Instead, Moritz added, the most likely scenario was that Andrew accidentally salt-poisoned himself., In light of this information, Moritz felt certain that Andrews prognosis would have been the same whether or not Hannah had called an ambulance. She reported Andrews unusual eating habits to his adoption supervisor when she visited the Overton home on September 25. While Larry tried to scrub down the bedroom, Andrew pulled his sheets out of the trash several times, despite repeated warnings not to do so. She was unflappable and unfailingly patient with children. The court ruledher trial lawyers were ineffective, and sent her case back to be retried. In October 2006 a four-year-old from Corpus Christi named Andrew Burd died mysteriously of salt poisoning. Hess disavowed Garcias account at a court hearing regarding the Overton children, and prosecutors never entered Garcias affidavit into evidence or called him to testify at Hannahs trial. In the eyes of law enforcement, Hannah and Larry were not grieving parents but perpetrators of an appalling crime.
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