In the context of a criminal investigation, the calm that she had always exhibited in the midst of crisis was suddenly a liabilityan indication, perhaps, that she was cold-blooded enough to have killed a child. 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. I first met him shortly after the death of my husband 4 years ago and his kind, gentle spirit and wonderful sense of humor made such a difference at that time and ever since. 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. Impatient to return to the boys bedside, she gave a hurried, disjointed account of the day that omitted critical details, such as how she had found Andrew in the pantry unattended, and she made only fleeting mention of his unusual eating habits. (Andrew was told that he could not have any food at McDonalds, since he had already eaten.) He was an example to many by the way he lived his life and his loyalty to those values that determine a true friend. And Eastwood was fired from the DAs office in 2010. As a former private-duty nurse, Hannah felt equipped to handle the challenges of a foster child; she had spent several years caring for special-needs children, some of whom were profoundly disabled. We dont know precisely how she got it down Andrew, but we know that he was very, very obedient, Eastwood told the jury, standing before the TV news cameras that Judge Longoria had allowed inside the courtroom. Before we ever tried to adopt, we had been warned that this was going to be difficult, that this was not going to be the Little Orphan Annie story, Larry told me. Im a pretty easygoing guy, but I remember thinking, Six kids? Larry told me. 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. The following day, family court judge Carl Lewis awarded temporary custody to Hannahs mother and stepfather. A funeral for Andrew followed at Seaside Memorial Park, alongside Corpus Christi Bay, at which Pastor Rod Carver officiated. . Could it be that you held his nose, held his neck, and made him drink this horrible concoction? the prosecutor challenged her during a withering cross-examination. They speculated Andrew might have had pica, an eating disorder characterized by an obsessive appetite and that Andrew accidentally poisoned himself by consuming a fatal amount of sodium. He was a good friend and a great dancer!! Our thoughts and prayers are with you and your family during this difficult time., With love and warm memories of our Cousin Pete. Whenever he got scaredand there was a long list of things that petrified him, from swimming to large crowds to the sound of balloons poppingthe Overtons worked to help him overcome his fears, reassuring him that they loved him and that he was in safe surroundings. Andrew seems very happy in this home.. They also discovered that Hannah was pregnant again. Hannah Overton announced the birth of her sixth child,Gabriela Aliana, this week in a Facebook post that described a difficult delivery. Those charges were not considered double jeopardy because Overtons conviction was overturned by the higher court on the basis of ineffective counsel, which granted her a new trial. He. Prepare a personalized obituary for someone you loved.. December 22, 1930 - Their arrests came so quickly after Andrew died, they said, that they had no time to grieve for the boy they hoped to permanently make a part of their family. You may be trying to access this site from a secured browser on the server. He had the heart of a lion and graciously allowed me into his circle of friends. 3 Memories Hannah Overton Overton Hannah Jayne Passed away peacefully at Thorpe Hall on the 23rd December 2018 aged 28 years. Just after five oclock, the Overtons put him in their car and rushed him to a nearby urgent care clinic. He was born on April 2, 1940 in Little Rock, Arkansas to the late Lewis Franklin and Dwight Katherine Overton. Turn on desktop notifications for breaking stories about interest? As a frequent witness for the state in child abuse cases, Cortes was not in the habit of reaching out to defense attorneys, but he was so angered by the verdict that he picked up the phone. Patricia Sharpe writes a regular restaurant column, Pats Pick, for Texas Monthly. This small benefit will allow her and her sweet family to continue to share their goodness with all of us with some degree of comfort. They had also watched the video of Hess questioning Hannah, during which she described calling a paramedic friend in Oklahoma for guidance when the boys condition deteriorated, and even using her cameras flash to check if his pupils were reactive, but never calling for an ambulance. She and her husband Larry lived in Corpus Christi, Texas, and served faithfully in their church. In the eyes of law enforcement, Hannah and Larry were not grieving parents but perpetrators of an appalling crime. 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. Much loved daughter of Andrew and Susan, dearly loved sister of. He acted more like a toddler than a preschooler, they noted; if he wanted an object, he pointed to it and grunted. Its daily. He was a gentle and kind person always willing to help others. Today I will thank God that I knew Dabney, if only a little. He defecated on the floor of his bedroom, then smeared feces on the bed, the dresser, and the walls. There was Andrews bedjust a bare piece of plywood, with no mattressand a security camera, as the baby monitor was later called at trial, trained on it. Several crossed their arms; others looked away. Obituaries Section. A comment someone made was that it appeared that this child had been in a fight with a porcupine, the physician stated. I wouldnt give up that time we had with him and that he had with us.. With guns drawn, police officers had surrounded Hannah and Larrys car as they returned from an errand, forcing them to the ground and handcuffing them. . Receive obituaries from the city or cities of your choice. After your child dies to be told that somebody think its your fault. Hannahwho had already lost a child and was now living apart from her four older oneswas in a fragile state of mind. 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. He left me with that gift. According to Overtons attorney, Cynthia Orr, the Texas comptroller told Overton on Tuesday that she would receive a check for $573,333.33 as compensation her for her wrongful incarceration. Larry Overton was also charged with murder, but after his wife's conviction, he was offered a plea deal and was given probation. To Dabney and the Family: My heartfelt condolences and my thoughts and prayers go with each of you. At the time, Overton had four children and was pregnant with a fifth, and had no prior trouble with the law. I realized that it was something serious . A Right-wing Cabal Took Over Odessas Municipal Government. Overton's original trial attorneys admitted at an appeals hearing that they had made errors. His foster mother, Hannah Overton, was charged with capital. Larry and Hannah knew that Andrew loved Spider-Man, so they made sure to have all manner of Spider-Man-themed necessities for him: sheets, pajamas, a toothbrush, a towel, a swimsuit, and even a plate embossed with the superheros image. In the context of a criminal investigation, the calm that she had always exhibited in the midst of crisis was suddenly a liabilityan indication, perhaps, that she was cold-blooded enough to have killed a child. Overton, 38, was convicted in 2007 after being accused of force-feeding young Andrew Burd enough salt to kill him, even though she had no previous problems with the law and was raising four children and was pregnant with a fifth. They convicted her based on the latter argument, that she did not seek help quickly enough. My friend Dabo - thanks for the fun at Washington and Lee but mostly for these last few years when your selflessness and wisdom were refreshing to see and experience. Dabney was born on July 31, 1963 and grew up in Essex County, Va. How had Hannah, who was six months pregnant and recovering from whiplash, managed to overpower Andrew? Andrew accompanied his foster mother to services every Sunday, and with his thatch of blond hair and beaming grin, he was hard to miss. Andrew flew into a rage. There were the charred remnants of his Spider-Man sheets in the fire pit. His mothers and fathers parental rights were terminated soon after he turned three. Four months later, on October 2, 2006, Andrew fell suddenly and acutely ill while he was alone with Hannah. Yet the jury had never heard from him. But had jurors fully understood the decision they had been asked to make? We had known each other for ten years, and I dont think Id ever seen her mad, Haller told me. He visited us in the country and brought his serinity along. She was unflappable and unfailingly patient with children. Hannah and Andrew In October 2006 a four-year-old from Corpus Christi named Andrew Burd died mysteriously of salt poisoning. Hannah - Please accept our sincere condolences on your loss. Dabney will be greatly missed, but not forgotten. When I first learned Andrew had died, I was angry, he explained to me. Round-trip, the journey is 632 miles. What a great sense of comfort to know that I could be greated on the other side by such a kind person. Would you like to offer Jonah Lee Overtons loved ones a condolence message? They get to see her for two hours, once a monthtwenty-four hours in a year, Larry said. They chattered about an upcoming birthday party and discussed the merits of their favorite colors, finishing each others sentences between slurps of soup. Its not even a consideration, she said. It did not matter that Haller, who had seen Andrew in the days leading up to his hospitalization and who was frequently in the Overton home, had never observed any suspicious bruises or indications of abuse. Hannah would never harm a child. Even setting aside her loyalty to her friend, the detectives theory made no sense to her. Please call me at your earliest convenience.. Copyright 2023 Echovita Inc. All rights reserved. Search by Name. 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. a few minutes before we actually took him in, she testified. He will be missed by his many friends. I dont see what caused the trauma to the brain, he said. Normans remarks were hardly the stuff of a cocksure prosecutor. Finally, Jimenez stated, I do not believe that there was sufficient evidence to indicate that Hannah Overton intentionally killed Andrew Burd. In response, Eastwood penned an affidavit, asserting that she did not engage in any misconduct. Nueces County jurors found she'dfailed to seek timely medical care for the boy. The Registry provides detailed information about every known exoneration in the United States since 1989cases in which a person was wrongly convicted of a crime and later cleared of all the charges based on new evidence of innocence. In the midst of the chaos that followed, no one recognized how distressed Andrew was by the sight of Hannahs bloodied face. He was preceded in death by his mot One of her favorite books to revisit is Ruth. 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. Overton has accused Eastwood of acting unethically in her case, something Eastwood has denied repeatedly. God bless you Dabney, we'll miss you. I didnt realize the seriousness of the situation. Eastwood questioned how Andrew had come to have scratches on his neck. 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. Hannah went into labor with her first child, Isaac, at the Subialdeas house, and though she had planned to come back to work after her sons birth, she found the separation from him too wrenching. The absence of their mother and their late brother was quietly acknowledged. On October 2, 2006, 29-year-old Hannah Overton and her husband, Larry brought Andrew Burd, their four-year-old foster son whom they were in the process of adopting, to a hospital in Corpus Christi, Texas after the boy stopped breathing. Andrews behavior worsened that September, after the family was involved in a car accident. Both Larry and Hannah had done missionary work, and as a teenager, Hannah had spent holidays volunteering at an orphanage across the border, in Reynosa, where she had fed, bathed, and ministered to kids who had been living on the streets. -- Sarah Albiston, I enjoyed working with Dabney from time to time. 1 x 120' / Produced for Discovery Networks. A Texas mother who spent years in prison before she was exonerated for capital murder has welcomed a new child. As you know, Dabney and I had a lot of good times and he was a dear friend and fraternity brother. Im very thankful that this compensation is finally coming through, Overton told ABC News. 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. Theres An App for That. Or had the tragedy claimed its second victim? See you then, my friend. The day Andrew died Hannah said she found him in the kitchen pantry but could not determine what he had consumed, if anything. We loved him and will miss him. Push him? Throughout the interrogation, which spanned more than two hours, Hannah insisted that she had never harmed Andrew. Report an error or add more information about this case. The paperwork Orr now forwarded to him, which showed that Andrews stomach contained a great deal of water, only confirmed the clinical directors initial conclusion. In October 2006 a four-year-old from Corpus Christi named Andrew Burd died mysteriously of salt poisoning. Like Hannah, Haller homeschooled her children, and the two mothers split teaching duties; the Haller children went to the Overton home for instruction for part of the day and vice versa. State district judge Jose Longoria, who would oversee Hannahs trial the following fall, would later rule Fernandezs finding of blunt force trauma to be inadmissible because it was not based on sufficient data or reliable methodology. Hannah, we are all so sorry for the loss of your brother. Any God, Christian or not, would have wanted a better mother for Andrew.. Sifting through it one afternoon, Orr came across documents she had never seen before, which showed that Andrews stomach contents did not have an elevated amount of salt when he arrived at the urgent care clinic. Died Feb. 18, 2003 Mrs. Nettie Sue Overton, 78, Florence passed away Tuesday at Eliza Coffee Memorial Hospital. Making him sleep on plywood burning sheets, becoming so enraged she forced him to have 23 teaspoons of hot pepper, and then watched him die in agony.. On their honeymoon, they stopped at the orphanage in Reynosa, where Hannah wanted Larry to meet some of the children she had told him so much about. In a 2012 interview from a Texas prison, Overton told ABC News that during one of the monthly visitations with her children, [Emma] took her first step, I was there. He touched my heart and those of my dear friends. Just as she had hoped, they would have six children. Throughout the meal, Andrew repeatedly asked, Is my mom okay? He also kept requesting more food. The Carvers, like most members of Calvary Chapel, never doubted her innocence. He was a very quiet and caring man. Box 70, Millers Tavern, Va.; St. Christopher's School, 711 St. Christopher's Road, Richmond, Va. 23226; or the Chesapeake Bay Foundation, 1108 E. Main St. Suite 1600, Richmond, Va. 23219. My prayers and thoughts are with you all. If I failed in my duties of disclosure before the Hannah Overton trial (which the record corroborates I did not), then so did Ms. Jimenez., Orr filed the writ in April 2011, and soon afterward San Antonio Express-News reporter John MacCormackwhose reporting has raised questions about the fairness of Hannahs convictionmade a routine call to the office to gauge the reaction to the recent developments in the case. I never knew him but it is obvious from all the wonderful things that people are saying that he was an incredible person and friend to so many. 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. But as the afternoon wore on, his symptoms grew troubling; his breathing became congested, and he became less and less responsive. During closing arguments, Gilmore emphasized that Hannah had no motive to kill Andrew and that the state had failed to prove that she had intentionally caused the boys death. Andrew seems very happy in this home.. He served as president of the School of Law. It was very tense. Its somebodys worst nightmare, Hannah Overton told ABC News in an earlier interview. Overton, who has long maintained her innocence, spent seven years in prison for the young childs death. Why Does He Get to Make That Call? The thoughts and prayers of your co-workers are with you and your family. Guest Book Not sure what to say? He was an avid sailor who was active in the Fishing Bay Yacht Club and raced with the crew of La Maga. He was kind, he was gentle, he had a great smile. 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. I know he will be missed by all his family and friends. Although I believe that Mrs. Overton was remiss in seeking timely medical care for Andrew Byrd, I do not believe that she intended or knew that this would result in his death. The wording of the jury charge, she added, had been ambiguous and confusing. Ultimately, Warfield wrote, I do not feel that justice has been served., Two days after Hannah was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole, a pediatrician named Edgar Cortes took the unusual step of contacting Gilmore. Write your message of sympathy today. May God wrap his loving arms around you until we meet again. There have been a few tear-filled nights because one of the kids misses Andrew, Larry told me later.