I wouldnt give up that time we had with him and that he had with us., As we sat across from each other in the dayroom, Hannah and I discussed her case and the anguish that had consumed her following Andrews death. I was so shocked and saddened to learn today of Dabney's sudden and all too premature death. Dabney is a graduate of Aylett Country Day School, St. Christopher's School, and Washington and Lee University. There is no photo or video of Jonah Lee Overton.Be the first to share a memory to pay tribute. We truly thought his obsession with food was a behavioral issue, not a medical one, Larry said. Larry hurried home to help, but Andrew, who had been vomiting, only grew worse. While behind bars,Overton relied on her faith, family and supporters and led Bible studies. He was the first one to introduce me to kayaking from Aylett to Walkerton on the Mattaponi. Hannah, who was left with whiplash and a severely swollen jaw, spent the next several weeks immobilized by a neck brace, mostly confined to bed. As Larry stood in the kitchen and peeled potatoes, the kidsexcited to have a visitorshowed me around their house, pointing out their favorite hiding places and the plaster cast of their footprints in the hallway, which includes the letter A for Andrew. When Andrews condition worsened, she and Larry had debated whether to call 911 or go to the nearby urgent care clinic, a concern because Andrew lacked health insurance. One paramedic recounted how he had seen two sores on Andrew that looked to me like cigarette burns because they were round. Another paramedic also believed the sores were cigarette burns, though he admitted he had only looked at them from a distance. Fernandez, the medical examiner, said he had observed burnlike scarring on Andrews arm that had likely been caused by contact with a hot surface. But neither Larry nor Hannah smoked. Every Easter and Christmas holiday was spent at the Reynosa orphanage, whose wards were primarily the unwanted children of prostitutes who worked the nearby red-light district. Published in Legacy from Nov. 11 to Nov. 12, 2009. After your child dies to be told that somebody think its your fault. Witnesses outside the home said they had seen Andrew's bizarre habits, too. I am so sorry to hear about Dabney. Search by Name. Hess became exasperated. Several crossed their arms; others looked away. Katy Vine has been a staff writer since 2002. Mr. Overton was a U. S. Army Veteran and a member of the First United Methodist Church in Bryant. Receive obituaries from the city or cities of your choice. The doctor had been the on-call emergency medicine physician at Driscoll the day that Andrew arrived, and he had resuscitated the boy as he was transported to the intensive care unit. I am a better person for knowing him. I dont see what caused the trauma to the brain, he said. She hugged them and let them climb onto her lap, often returning to Lindale with head lice. We lived in the same neighborhood a few years back and after meeting at the Dog Park, spent some great time together running, kayaking and meeting for a few cold ones at Melitos. Shortly afterward, at three-thirty, Hannah called Larry and asked him to come home since Andrew was vomiting and she needed his help. The kids now range in age from four to twelve, and when I visited them late one afternoon, not long after I had seen Hannah, they seemed unencumbered by the tragedy that had engulfed their family. At 13, he served as a page for the General Assembly of Virginia. Love Carl Robertson, My thoughts and prayers are with you in your time of grief. Hannah Overton, far right, sits next to her attorney, Cynthia Orr, center, and prosecutor, Doug Norman, April 26, 2012 in Corpus Christi, Texas. Andrew accompanied his foster mother to services every Sunday, and with his thatch of blond hair and beaming grin, he was hard to miss. We were in awe.. Other couples they knew who had adopted foster children assured them that their kids had outgrown similar eating issues, and the Overtons assumed that, with time, Andrew would outgrow his as well. It was, Hannah and Larry would later remember, one of the happiest times in their lives. Other witnesses testified that they had detected signs of abuse. Hannah Overton, a Corpus Christi homemaker and mother of five, was convicted of capital murder in 2007 for the death Andrew Burd, the four-year-old boy she and her husband were in the process. With her first husband, whose name was Stephens, she lived in Iowa, and had one daughter. Both sides worked hard independently to determine the truth and achieve justice for the Overton family, the entire family. probably to punish his behavior, that then goes into cardiorespiratory arrest.. He always made time and never in too much of a hurry for a chat. Haller was stunned by the accusation. I enjoyed his company and was truly blessed to have shared time with him. Despite Eastwoods zeal, there were still basic questions that the prosecution could not explain. Most striking to the Overtons, and to their neighbors and friends, was his preoccupation with eating. The passenger side of their old Ford van was not equipped with an air bag, and Hannah, who had pulled down her seat belt so she could turn to talk to the kids, was jolted forward, her face hitting the dashboard. The key issues in this case were knowledge and intent, and his opinion went directly to those issues. Hannahs attorneys would later argue on appeal that the doctors opinionthat Hannah had never intended for the boy to dieamounted to exculpatory evidence that the state had withheld from the defense. Relatives, neighbors, and members of the Overtons church pitched in to look after the kids during Hannahs recovery, but the revolving door of caregivers proved to be difficult for Andrew, who began acting out on a scale they had not seen before. Hannah was less impressed, given that Larrywho, at sixteen, was an enthusiastic fan of Christian punk rockwas sporting a nose ring and a blue mohawk. More:Hannah Overton, family celebrate her pregnancy months after she's declared innocent in boy's death. The following day, family court judge Carl Lewis awarded temporary custody to Hannahs mother and stepfather. Four subsequent investigations were triggered by reports of abuse or neglect, including one allegation that both his mother and maternal grandmother were incapable of properly caring for him because they used methamphetamines. It was like they were arresting Bonnie and Clyde, Gilmore said. A family birthday celebration in the summer of 2006. If she had taken Andrew to the hospital earlier, what would she have taken him in for? Fire Ants Have Unleashed Chaos in Texas for Decades. Then District Attorney Mark Skurka dropped the case. Hannah was seven when Saenz was arrested in 1984 and charged with a singularly horrific crime: the bludgeoning death of a sixteen-year-old girl whose nude body was discovered at the waters edge on Padre Island. When Gilmore polled the jury afterward, all twelve members stated that they had found Hannah guilty of capital murder by omission for not acting quickly enough to save Andrew; none believed that she had poisoned him. Andrew seems very happy in this home.. Overtons current defense attorney, Cynthia Orr, told ABC News she was thrilled to get the call from Skurka announcing his motion to dismiss had been granted by the judge. Sorry, I he began, when she asked him to put on his shoes. Hannah Overton Archives - Texas Monthly Hannah liked the tall, serious-minded student who shared the same hopes she had of creating a life centered on children and Christian outreach. She and Larry were under tremendous financial strain, she admitted, but she stressed that they had rushed for help as soon as they realized how critical Andrews condition was. She and her Menu. Overton's original trial attorneys admitted at an appeals hearing that they had made errors. If you fill out the first name, last name, or agree to terms fields, you will NOT be added to the newsletter list. A pediatric critical care specialist who treated Andrew at Driscoll, Alexandre Rotta, grew equally troubled. In other words, if the jury could not agree conclusively that she had poisoned Andrew, it could still rule that she was guilty of capital murder by omission, or by failure to act. Before the family returned home, Andrew asked if he could have lunch, and Hannah told him that he needed to wait; Larry was bringing them something to eat, she explained, and he would be back in a few minutes. We thought that he would stop turning to food for comfort when he learned that he could trust us. To try and curtail Andrews compulsive eating, they put him in time-outs, though to little effect. One of her favorite books to revisit is Ruth. 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. Hannah Overton Obituary - Death Notice and Service Information I made sure that he saw that we had an identical set of Spider-Man sheets so he would calm down., That evening Larry laid a sleeping bag on top of Andrews plywood bed frame, where, he told the boy, he would have to spend the night while his mattress finished drying. 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. Find Hannah Overton obituaries and memorials at Legacy.com What a great sense of comfort to know that I could be greated on the other side by such a kind person. 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. I remember him as a fun loving gentle person that loved life. Sorry to hear of Dabney's passing. And a succession of witnesses, nearly all of them members of Calvary Chapel, recounted Andrews unusual eating habits and Hannahs attentive parenting. Obituary: Wendell Leon Overton (Updated) - The Cullman Tribune Hannah was always drawn to stray people.. Not long after his arrest, a grand jury upgraded the charges against him to capital murder, and he feared that he too might face life in prison. Financially, the accident had come at a precarious time; Larry had recently purchased his bosss landscape lighting business, and he needed to put in long hours just to make ends meet. But the damage was done: that Hannah had confessed to force-feeding Andrew and beating him was repeated, uncorrected, on the local news. She could not consent to a lesser charge, she told her attorneys, because she felt it would mean she was admitting fault. Our condolences to his family and friends. Take it one day at a time. In October 2006 a four-year-old from Corpus Christi named Andrew Burd died mysteriously of salt poisoning. News reports that followed, prominently featuring their grim-faced mug shots, cast the Overton home as a house of horrors. He was a gentle and kind person always willing to help others. The detective had been alerted to Andrews grave condition when the boy was transported to a nearby hospital the previous afternoon and, as was protocol, had begun looking into the circumstances surrounding the boys unusual and rapid decline. Hannah and the girls, who complained of feeling achy, were taken to the hospital in an ambulance while Larrys parents picked up the rest of the family and, after dropping Larry off at the hospital, took the boys to a nearby Whataburger. The prosecution portrayed her as a mother who had lost control and tried to punish the young boy by giving him seasoning mixed in water. The obituary was featured in Peterborough Telegraph on January 3, 2019. He was good to everyone he met. Hannah did describe how she and Larry had at first tried to treat the boys symptoms themselves, often volunteering more information than the detective had asked for. Hannah understood little of what had taken place except that she, her mother, and her brother had to leave Corpus Christi behind. My sons in high school now. Right, a photo of Andrew Burd held by Larry Overton. He was a supportive friend to so many people, including me. I always knew I'd be able to catch up with him on occasion at the Village Starbucks. AP. Hoping to show him that his behavior was self-destructive, Larry told Andrew one morning that he could have as much as he wanted for breakfast. His foster mother, Hannah Overton, was charged with capital. Mr. Overton continued in private practice until the age of 80. I knew Dabney from years ago when we played softball together. on our list, Other I was shocked and saddened to hear of Dabney's premature death last week. After a week-long trial, he was convicted of murder and sentenced to 23 years in prison. I remind them that the Lord loves him more than anyone could and he is with Him now and we will see him again someday.. Copyright 2023 Echovita Inc. All rights reserved. May your memories bring you comfort. The Overtons rushed him to a nearby urgent care clinic after his breathing became labored and he stopped responding to their questions, but by the time they arrived, he had fallen unconscious. Nueces County District Attorney Mark Skurka had charged Overton a second time for murder after her release. The medical staff at Driscoll Childrens Hospital had determined that Andrew had nearly twice the normal level of sodium in his blooda highly abnormal findingas well as bleeding in the brain, and as Hess questioned her, he tried to ascertain what had happened. The defense presented the jury with a medical mystery. When Andrew was two-and-a-half years old, CPS determined that he was in immediate danger, according to an affidavit, and he was put in foster care. According to Hannah, Andrew once again asked for an early lunch, and once again, when she told him that he would have to wait, he defecated and smeared feces across the floor. It came as a shock when I got the call from Peter Detlefs letting me know that Dabney had passed away. . Anne Turner Overton Haile died peacefully at home in Portland, Oregon on December 7, 2021. They declined to do any further chromosomal testing and turned to prayer instead. If he had Downs, that was the blessing that God had chosen to give us, Larry said. My two boys will remember him always as "that tall man with the super cool motorcycle". Each pregnancy felt extraordinarily fortunate; after Isaac, Hannah had suffered two miscarriages and been advised that she might not be able to have more children. I worked with Dabney in the mortgage industry a few years ago and he was everything you described. Hess, who investigated child abuse cases for the police forces family violence unit, had a very different impression of Hannah. I see Dabney very clearly at the dog park with Moose and Betsy, gliding along with that long stride of his and his big smile for everyone. Despite all the pain, she told me that if she could do it over again, she would not change their decision to bring Andrew into their home. Despite appearances, however, he was hardly a reprobate. His foster mother, Hannah Overton, was charged with capital murder, vilified from all quarters, and sent to prison for life. Overton's original trial attorneys admitted at an appeals hearing that they had made errors. His foster mother, Hannah Overton, was charged with capital murder, vilified from all quarters, and sent to prison for life. Hess had given me his word that he would tell me if and when warrants were going to be issued, so that Hannah and Larry could turn themselves in. Instead, law enforcement officials had apprehended the Overtons by making a felony traffic stop, a practice usually reserved for suspects believed to be armed and dangerous. Afterward, she instinctively looked back to check on the children, not realizing that her face was covered in blood. The marks could be consistent with many things, including a fight, an altercation, someone trying to hold this childs neck forcefully, he said. Because he was vomiting? He was born on April 2, 1940 in Little Rock, Arkansas to the late Lewis Franklin and Dwight Katherine Overton. But as the afternoon wore on, his symptoms grew troubling; his breathing became congested, and he became less and less responsive. Absolutely not, Hannah shot back. He was preceded in. I remember many lively discussions with Cabell and Dabney about the history of Virginia and North Carolina. . On October 3, while Andrew was still hospitalized, the agency removed Isaac, Isabel, Ally, and Sebastian from their parents custody, placing them in two separate foster homes in Beeville, sixty miles away. I visited Hannah at the Murray Unit one bright, cloudless afternoon, when the warden granted her a few hours to speak with me. Once reunited with their childrenwho were terrified by the ordealLarry and Hannah had to break the awful news to them about Andrew. He was an avid sailor who was active in the Fishing Bay Yacht Club and raced with the crew of La Maga. Not the brightest thing to do, Larry conceded. Yet according to the unusual wording of the jury charge, jurors had to believe just one of two scenarios to find Hannah guilty: that she deliberately made Andrew ingest a lethal amount of salt or that she purposely neglected to get timely medical attention, knowing that this would kill him. hannah overton obituary Dabney will be greatly missed, but not forgotten. Larry Overton was also charged with murder, but after his wife's conviction, he was offered a plea deal and was given probation. Not until Sebastian was born did doctors discover that his only impairment was a hole in his heart, which healed on its own. (More shocking details on abuse suffered by four-year-old before death, began one breathless report.) She is also qualified to receive insurance and education benefits. Overton had to have a blood transfusion and her new daughter spent a few days in a neonatal intensive care unit. To the Overton Family and friends of Dabney: I first met Dabney in the fall of 1972 when he was in fourth grade at Aylett Country Day School. How had Hannah, who was six months pregnant and recovering from whiplash, managed to overpower Andrew? I wish you and your family my sincere condolences. Until then, she said, Andrew was doing nothing that my other kids hadnt done with the flu. My job requires me to be an advocate for the state. However, Judge Longoria could allow the jury to consider a lesser charge if he felt that the evidence did not support capital murder, and after hearing the states case, he did so, telling both the prosecution and the defense that he was willing to let the jury consider manslaughter or criminally negligent homicide. Pleading out to that was much better than having my children grow up without a mother or a father. In exchange for his plea, Larry was given five years probation and a $5,000 fine. The onus for the boys death fell on Hannah, who was charged with capital murder. His mother was just sixteen, the file shows, when she gave birth to him in Corpus Christi on July 28, 2002. Overton spent seven years in prison before the Texas Court of Appeals overturned her capital murder charges on September 17, 2014. 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. However, that didn't stop us from having friendly and lively conversations about the greatest game. We shared wonderful times together as we mused over Rumi and different flavor ice creams. Dabney was born on July 31, 1963 and grew up in Essex County, Va. Cynthia Hujar-Orr, Gerry Goldstein and John Raley were apart of Overtons appellate team, http://pr-prod.com/project/until-proven-innocent/, https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation-now/2017/05/10/da-declare-texas-woman-innocent-salt-poisoning-case/315400001/, https://abcnews.go.com/US/texas-mother-freed-spending-years-prison-foster-sons/story?id=26186920.

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