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Lantern Project: Since October 2013, Hope House has joined with other domestic violence programs around the state by implementing the Lantern Project. For our part in this statewide project, we added to the lamppost in front of Hope House a purple wreath. We will turn on the light for a week every time there is a death related to domestic violence in Wisconsin. We will post information online about the person(s) that was killed. If you drive by our building and see our lamppost on, please reflect on the deadly impact that domestic violence has on our communities. We know the list of stories we post here is incomplete. We strive to learn about and share these stories but know that there are some that we and the media miss. If you see a news story of a death in WI related to domestic violence and don't see it posted here, please feel free to let us know about it here. Thank you.  January 17th, 2020: Samantha Roberts, Age 20 – Nekoosa
When Samantha Roberts smiled, everyone around her smiled. That’s what her grandfather, Alan Roberts, said of his granddaughter. She had a sense of humor, too. Every so often, Samantha, who had cerebral palsy and used a wheelchair, would stick her leg out and pretend she was going to trip someone. Roberts said Samantha loved joining him on walks. One night, she was having trouble sleeping after she had undergone surgery. Roberts said he laid with her until she fell asleep. “She was a very special little girl,” Roberts said. “I’ll miss that girl forever.” Samantha was killed Jan. 17 at her home in Nekoosa. She was 20 years old, and an autopsy revealed she died from significant head trauma. Police arrested her mother’s live-in boyfriend, Paul Carter, 43, who admitted to hitting Samantha in the past but denied harming her the day of her death, according to court records. He was jailed on suspicion of first-degree homicide and remained in custody Thursday on a $1 million cash bond. His next court date is Feb. 4. Samantha graduated in 2018 from Nekoosa High School with her sister, Destiny Roberts, 19. Samantha’s friends and family members remember her as a bright, carefree person who could make anyone’s bad day better. Her adoptive sister, Angel Wilson, said when Samantha was younger she loved to watch “Animal Planet” and read Dr. Seuss books. “I just want people to know how happy she was,” Wilson said. “There wasn’t a person who knew her who didn’t love her.” A Daily Tribune reporter was unable to reach Samantha’s mother for comment. RELATED: Report: Nekoosa man admitted hitting woman with cerebral palsy days before her death Samantha’s paternal grandmother, Donna Johnson of Macomb, Illinois, last saw the girl in 2012, after Samantha’s father, Leroy, died with leukemia. That’s when Samantha moved from Illinois to Wisconsin with her mother and siblings, Johnson said. Johnson said they’re trying to remind themselves of the happy times they had with Samantha. One of Johnson’s favorite memories happened when they were trying to help the girl move around with a walker when she was younger. “She tried to run (me) over,” Johnson said. “(Her) daddy and grandpa and I all got a laugh out of that.” Reba Roberts, an aunt who would look after her when she was younger, said Samantha always would smile and move to her favorite songs. She loved attention and stimulation from other people, Reba Roberts said, and she could always put a smile on your face. Brandi McMahill of Macomb became friends of the Roberts family when Samantha lived in Illinois. Her daughters loved spending time with Samantha. “If you were having a bad day, her smile would give you butterflies in your stomach and make you happier,” McMahill said. “Anyone who came in contact with Sammy, they were better for it.”
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Lantern Project: Since October 2013, Hope House has joined with other domestic violence programs around the state by implementing the Lantern Project. For our part in this statewide project, we added to the lamppost in front of Hope House a purple wreath. We will turn on the light for a week every time there is a death related to domestic violence in Wisconsin. We will post information online about the person(s) that was killed. If you drive by our building and see our lamppost on, please reflect on the deadly impact that domestic violence has on our communities. We know the list of stories we post here is incomplete. We strive to learn about and share these stories but know that there are some that we and the media miss. If you see a news story of a death in WI related to domestic violence and don't see it posted here, please feel free to let us know about it here. Thank you.  January 15th, 2020: Edward Styer, Age 78 – Colfax Obituary We now know a Dunn County man allegedly killed his father in Dunn County on Wednesday. According to Dunn County Sheriff Kevin Bygd, Gary Styer, 51, of rural Colfax killed his father Edward Styer, 78. According to Bygd, on Wednesday morning Gary Styer used a “blunt object” to kill his father and remained in the house with him until later in the day. Then he drove to Eau Claire and told someone he knew that something had happened at the house. Gary Styer was arrested for 1st degree intentional homicide. News 18 first learned there was a death investigation on Wednesday night but few details were released until now. A $250,000 cash bond was set for Styer. Formal charges are expected to be filed next week. Lantern Project: Since October 2013, Hope House has joined with other domestic violence programs around the state by implementing the Lantern Project. For our part in this statewide project, we added to the lamppost in front of Hope House a purple wreath. We will turn on the light for a week every time there is a death related to domestic violence in Wisconsin. We will post information online about the person(s) that was killed. If you drive by our building and see our lamppost on, please reflect on the deadly impact that domestic violence has on our communities. We know the list of stories we post here is incomplete. We strive to learn about and share these stories but know that there are some that we and the media miss. If you see a news story of a death in WI related to domestic violence and don't see it posted here, please feel free to let us know about it here. Thank you. December 12th, 2019: Unnamed Son, Age 11 months- Kenosha A 26-year-old Kenosha man is in custody, alleged to have killed his 11-month-old son. The baby died Dec. 12 at Children’s Hospital of Wisconsin two days after paramedics were called to a home in the 6000 block of 19th Avenue. An autopsy showed the baby died from injuries consistent with physical abuse, Kenosha Police Lt. James Beller said. The baby’s father, identified by police as Loren Hamilton, has been in Kenosha County Jail on a probation hold since Dec. 12.He is expected to be charged with second-degree reckless homicide. December 24th, 2019: Sheila Green, Age 63- Madison Obituary A Madison man allegedly shot and killed his sister on Christmas Eve after authorities found her body riddled with 15 entry and exit gunshot wounds at her home, according to a criminal complaint on Friday. Joseph Green, 57, was charged with first-degree intentional homicide in the death of his sister, 63-year-old Sheila Green, in Dane County Court on Friday. According to the complaint, officers were called to the 900 block of Midvale Boulevard around 4 p.m. on Christmas Eve. They were responding to a 911 call from Joseph Green, who told 911 callers that “My sister needs an ambulance immediately.” Joseph Green then hung up the phone and returned to his apartment, according to the complaint. At his sister’s home, officers found Sheila Green, deceased. Police reported there were no signs of a struggle between the siblings, and little blood in the home. The Dane County Medical Examiner’s Office reported Sheila had 15 entry and exit gunshot wounds in her body, according to the complaint. Officers were then dispatched to Joseph Green’s apartment in the 600 block of Sawyer Terrace in Madison. With the help of K-9 Archie, officers discovered a pair of cowhide gloves and a black handgun in dumpsters outside the building. Early that day surveillance video captured Joseph arriving at the building and apparently dropping the gloves and the gun into those same dumpsters. Bail was set at $1 million for Green. Joseph Green will be back in court on Jan.2 , 2020 for his preliminary hearing.  December 26th, 2019: Chad Bickler, Age 42- Wind Lake Obituary The New Berlin man accused of fatally shooting Chad Bickler on Dec. 26 inside a Racine County home did so after telling his girlfriend that he would kill her new love interest, according to a criminal complaint. Troy Hoffman was charged Monday — three days after he turned himself in — in Racine County Circuit Court with first-degree intentional homicide, attempted first-degree homicide and mistreatment of animals by use of a dangerous weapon, all felonies. If convicted on the homicide charge, Hoffman faces a mandatory life sentence. According to the complaint: After finding out his girlfriend was seeing Bickler, Hoffman angrily texted her that if she was on her way to meet Bickler on Dec. 26, as she was, that Hoffman would kill him. Hoffman followed his girlfriend’s car to Bickler’s home in the 25700 block of West Loomis Road in the town of Norway, and rammed his vehicle into the back of it. When he got out, the two began arguing and the woman fled in fear for her life when she saw Hoffman had a handgun in his hand. Hoffman then walked up to the house and fired multiple shots at it before forcing his way inside and firing several more shots at Bickler, hitting him multiple times in the abdomen and legs, and a family dog. Lantern Project: Since October 2013, Hope House has joined with other domestic violence programs around the state by implementing the Lantern Project. For our part in this statewide project, we added to the lamppost in front of Hope House a purple wreath. We will turn on the light for a week every time there is a death related to domestic violence in Wisconsin. We will post information online about the person(s) that was killed. If you drive by our building and see our lamppost on, please reflect on the deadly impact that domestic violence has on our communities. We know the list of stories we post here is incomplete. We strive to learn about and share these stories but know that there are some that we and the media miss. If you see a news story of a death in WI related to domestic violence and don't see it posted here, please feel free to let us know about it here. Thank you.  January 1st, 2020: Alonzo Lamar Jr., Age 1 – Milwaukee
A 21-year-old Milwaukee man is facing charges in connection to the death of a 1-year-old child. The victim is Alonzo Lamar Jr. — also known as A.J. The accused is James Johnson. Johnson is facing the following charges:
Andreana Martin, the baby’s mother, told police she left her 1-year-old son Alonzo Lamar Jr. in the care of her boyfriend on New Year’s Day while she went to work. While at work, Martin says she received a call from her boyfriend, identified as James Johnson, saying something was wrong. Martin said she rushed home to find her son lifeless and covered in bruises. According to the complaint, officials say the child appeared to have human bite marks on the left arm, back, and leg. Officials also observed multiple bruises and abrasions to the face and head — along with lacerations to the inner cheek. An autopsy concluded that the child died as a result of blunt force trauma and the death was ruled a homicide. According to the complaint, Johnson claimed the child fell off the bed in the basement face-first onto the floor. “…crying non-stop for over an hour,” Based on the accidental fall explanation Johnson provided to the mother, detectives measured the distance between the top of the mattress to the floor. The distance measured 1’4”, meaning the fall would have been a very minor fall, according to the complaint. During an interview with detectives, Johnson admitted to biting the child, striking him multiple times in the head with an open hand, and punching him in the leg with a closed fist because he was “crying non-stop for over an hour,” according to the complaint. “AJ was just so happy. He was the happiest baby anybody could ever meet,” said Selena Cole, Alonzo’s Godmother. Now family members come together in heartbreak — hoping to heal through prayer. “We ask your hand to mercy to stretch out on them, and you strengthen them right now, in the mighty name of Jesus, we pray this prayer. If you’re in agreement say Amen,” heard from a prayer circle. A GoFundMe account was set up for Alonzo Lamar Jr. CLICK HERE to learn more. As for Johnson, he is due back in court for a preliminary hearing on Tuesday, Jan. 14. |
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