|
E-mail this page to a friend!
Grandmothers Robbing, Killing, Kidnapping,
What's This All About?
March 10, 2006 As Jay Leno would say, "What's
this all about?" Grandmothers robbing banks, shooting and strangling
granddaughters, killing people with hammers and abusing or kidnapping
their grandchildren are some of the stories that have grabbed the
headlines in this last month.
Here's a quick look at some of the reports about
unusual grandmothers that have been in the news just in the last few
weeks. For those concerned they may not be doing a good job as a
grandmother, this may make you feel a little more confident.
Grandmother Robs Bank
Pennsylvania - A 75-year-old grandmother was
arrested after a high-speed chase for robbing a bank at gunpoint.
Police say Marilyn Devine wore a ski mask and used
an unloaded handgun to scare cashiers into handing over cash.
She was arrested when police cars boxed her in
after a chase.
Her husband Raymond Devine, 77, broke down in tears
as she was led into court with her wrists and ankles shackled.
He said she did not mean to hurt anyone but had
been trying to help their son who had financial problems.
| |
Related Stories |
|
| |
Making the Most of Your Time with Grandchildren
Download your copy of
the grandparents credo
By Susan Newman, Ph.D., author
Little Things Mean A Lot: Creating Happy Memories with
Your Grandchildren
Feb.
27, 2006 - Every grandparent is familiar with the fly-by visit: that
short, rushed time spent with grandchild that is closer to a pit stop
than a bonding experience. The shortness of visits is dictated by the
babys routine, parents hectic schedules, or strained relationships.
You may feel your son- or daughter-in-law short-circuits your visits or
you have a generalized feeling of being intrusive.
Read more...
Read more
on
Grandparents |
|
Grandmother Murders Granddaughter
Ohio - The plea is not guilty by reason of insanity
for a 68-year-old woman accused of murdering her own granddaughter.
Amanda Corbin was shot to death 10 days ago and her
husband Brian survived a gunshot wound in his back.
Gertrude Simpkins appeared in court Monday on
charges that could send her to prison for life, but her attorney says
she didn't know what she was doing that day and will use the insanity
defense in her case.
Police say Amanda Corbin was shot to death in her
living room in LaRue in Marion County and Brian Corbin was shot when he
came home and discovered his wife's body.
Grandmother Strangles Granddaughter
North Carolina - A remorseful grandmother was
sentenced Tuesday to at least five years in prison after pleading guilty
to manslaughter in the death of her 21-year-old granddaughter.
Carolyn Ann Faison Boyette, 58, of Mount Olive
pleaded guilty to strangling Tiesha Faison during a fight.
Faison died last October 22nd in her
great-grandmother's home across the street from where she lived with her
grandmother.
A tearful Boyette apologized to the family and told
them they all had to get along. Her younger sister asked for mercy
before the sentence was imposed. Witnesses who spoke during the
sentencing hearing said the two women loved one another but fell to
arguing and then fighting.
Grandmother Kills Woman with Hammer
New York A Utica woman has pleaded guilty to
using a hammer to kill her tenant. Eleanor Torchia said the woman had
insulted her dead grandson.
Police found Sandra Goodmans bones buried outside
Torchias home in July. The 67- year old grandmother now faces 15 years
to life in prison.
Grandmother Charged with Felony Child Neglect
Virginia - A grandmother, 45, is charged with
felony child neglect, after her three-year-old grandson accidentally
shot himself in the hand, in Norfolk.
Police say the toddler found a loaded gun in a
coffee table drawer. He took it out, and the gun went off.
The little boy was taken to Children's Hospital Of
The King's Daughters, with non-life threatening injuries.
The grandmother, Kim Jones, and two other adults
were home, when the child shot himself. Jones and one of the other
adults, 66-year-old John Simpson, are charged with felony child neglect.
Grandmother Robs Bank, Caught Robbing Another
Berlin - A 70-year-old grandmother was jailed for
three years on Monday after being convicted of robbing a bank and
attempting to hold up another one.
The unnamed woman escaped with $9,550 from the
first bank in March 2003 after threatening a teller with an imitation
gun.
A second attempt to rob another bank six months
later failed when the cashier thought she was joking.
In both cases the woman used a taxi which waited
outside while she carried out the robberies.
The woman, who has three children and several
grandchildren, told the court she was badly in need of money to pay off
her debts.
Grandmother Charged with Child Neglect
North Carolina - A 50-year-old woman watching her
two grandchildren was cited for child neglect after she fell asleep
while cooking early Saturday morning.
Carmen Colon Lynch of 601 Peter Court had started
using the stove when she fell asleep on a couch and smoke began to fill
her apartment, said Jim Sughrue, spokesman for the Raleigh Police
Department.
Her 4-year-old grandson and 2-year-old
granddaughter tried to wake her up but couldn't, Sughrue said.
A neighbor noticed the smoke and got the children
out and called the Raleigh Fire Department. They extinguished the blaze.
Grandmother Kidnaps Grandchild
Tennessee - A Cheatham County grandmother wanted
for kidnapping her grandchild was arrested in Nashville, Metro police
said yesterday.
An officer patrolling in western Nashville saw a
suspicious vehicle and investigated further. Harriet McMinnis was
sitting inside, while her grandchild, 16-month-old Nevaeh Nicole
McMinnis, slept in the back seat, police said.
As the officer pulled behind the vehicle, he
realized it was wanted in connection with an Amber alert. McMinnis was
taken into police custody.
Cheatham County law enforcement officials were
notified and arrived on the scene to take the child into custody.
Cheatham County officials confirmed there were kidnapping warrants on
file for the grandmother.
Grandmother Kidnaps Granddaughter
New York - When Nucole Lewis went to school to pick
up her eight-year-old daughter on February 8, she was told her child was
released to her grandmother. Not knowing who had the child, she called
town police.
Police conducted an investigation that revealed the
child was, in fact, picked up by her grandmother, Mary Rowe, 53, who
drove the child to South Carolina, where Rowe lives.
New Windsor Police, the Horry County Police
Department and the Horry County Department of Social Services filed
charges against Rowe for custodial interference in the first degree, a
felony.
On February 16, Rowe was arrested in South
Carolina.
Grandmother Charged for Abusing Granddaughter
Oklahoma - . A Grady County grandmother is facing
child abuse charges after authorities say she broke the leg of a
15-month-old girl.
Sheriff's deputies arrested 40-year-old Julie
Carlene Stroud at her home in Bradley last night. She was charged today
with one count of child abuse in Grady County District Court.
Prosecutors allege the child's leg had been broken
for at least two weeks, and no medical attention was sought.
Stroud is the legal guardian for the child and an
older sibling. Officials say both children have been placed in
Department of Human Services custody.
Grandmother at War in Iraq
BAGHDAD, Iraq - Command Sgt. Maj. Doris Wollett may
be the oldest female soldier from the 80th Institutional Training
Division to be sent to Iraq, but shes not the only grandmother.
Wollett, 54, of Varina, supervises roughly 100
subordinates, about 75 of them from the Richmond-based Army Reserve unit
she has served in for 29 years. She notes that many of the soldiers are
the same age as her two grown daughters - or younger.
Tending the ranks is the part of her job that gives
her the most satisfaction.
Grandmother Whips Crocodile
Australia - The scars on her right arm serve as a
constant reminder of the morning Queensland grandmother Alicia Sorohan
took on a saltwater crocodile and won.
Now she has a more pleasant keepsake from her
fateful 2004 family trip to far north Queensland's Cape York Peninsula -
the Star of Courage.
The 61-year-old Brisbane resident was still
wondering what all the fuss was about when honored as part of the
Australian Bravery Awards.
But it's not every day a crocodile comes off second
best to a feisty grandmother.
In the early hours of October 11, 2004, Mrs Sorohan
was woken by the screams of family friend Andrew Kerr at a nearby tent
as he was dragged out of their Bathurst Bay campsite by the monster
reptile.
Aged 60 at the time, Mrs Sorohan "did what anyone
would do" and jumped on the crocodile's back, distracting it from its
prey.
Click here to Search SeniorJournal.com for more on
this subject
Click to More Senior News on the
Front Page
Copyright: SeniorJournal.com |
