Although he hung back when his siblings embraced their parents in group hugs, Larry and Hannah learned that if they asked Andrew to join in, he would do so enthusiastically, throwing his arms around them. The best memory is of riding camp the following summer when Dabney and a friend opted for motorcycle helmets rather than riding hard hats. Always with a Northern Neck Gingerale for me--I still can't buy a 12 pack without thinking of him. I plan their birthday parties from here, she told me. After a week-long trial, he was convicted of murder and sentenced to 23 years in prison. I worked with him at Branch Cabell years ago and also lived down the street from him for a while. We have a child that was well until that afternoon, that had behavioral issues, that was having temper tantrums, that was then given something . He would have been witness number one for the defense, Gilmore told me. When people are under severe stress, their judgment becomes poor., Cortess perspective was revelatory. A Federal Judge in Amarillo Could Effectively Ban the Abortion Pill. I am so sorry to learn of Dabney's passing. Had Andrew sat among them, I realized, he would have been nine years old. There were the charred remnants of his Spider-Man sheets in the fire pit. I shall miss him greatly. January 21, 2023 It was while watching the monitor that Hannah saw him trying to eat part of his foam mattress and paint off the wall. In loving memory of Jonah Lee Overton, While he was relieved not to have to serve prison time, the discrepancy between his wifes punishment and his own left him stupefied. Andrew was not a normal child, Cortes explained to me. 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. I worked with Dabney at Browder Russell just after he graduated from W & L, and saw him often at FBYC. She hugged them and let them climb onto her lap, often returning to Lindale with head lice. 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.. Hannah managed to clean him up, but when she reiterated that he would have to wait until lunchtime to eat, he defecated on the floor again. Hess was allowed to return to the force and is now a patrol sergeant. I spent many nights beating myself up over Could I have done this or could I have done that? Hannah told me, staring at her hands. As he grasped for the right words to convey the depth of pain a parent feels over the loss of a child, he noticed a row of unfamiliar faces. Its about trusting God and seeing how he is a god of redemption and restoration, she said. Hannahwho had already lost a child and was now living apart from her four older oneswas in a fragile state of mind. 1 x 120' / Produced for Discovery Networks. Then, in the spring of 2010, Hannahs appellate attorney, Cynthia Orr, made a startling discovery. He had a speech delay and spoke haltingly, sometimes with a stutter, but every week, when his Sunday school classmates went around in a circle to say their prayer requests, he made the same wish aloud: that he would be adopted. I know he will be missed by all his family and friends. A very special person has been taken from our midst and is and will be greatly missed. Larry called out that dinner was ready, and we gathered inside around a rough-hewn oak table he had made years ago. Preceded in death by his mother Hannah Spencer Haile Overton and infant brother Charles. Overton was released on bond in December 2014 after a Texas appellate court overturned her conviction and life sentence. I am a better person for knowing him. Plant a tree to honor the memory of your loved one. Dabney is a graduate of Aylett Country Day School, St. Christopher's School, and Washington and Lee University. We are grateful for the help and support of so many over the years who contributed to achieving what, for the Overton children, is a joyous result. Copyright 2023 Echovita Inc. All rights reserved. After your child dies to be told that somebody think its your fault. More outspoken was Andrews Sunday school teacher, who sat Hannah and Larry down and told them that he was a troubled kid. 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. I knew Dabney from the Richmond Athletic Club. Hannah, I am very sad to hear this news. Fueling the publics antipathy was an affidavit written by a CPS child abuse investigator named Jesse Garcia, who claimed that Hannah had admitted to forcing Andrew to drink two cupfuls of chili with water and quoted her as saying that she then beat the shit out of him. Garcia never produced any documentation or witnesses to corroborate his claim, and internal police memos show that law enforcement officials doubted the veracity of his story. By the time Hannah took the stand, jurors appeared to have made up their minds. Push him? Throughout the interrogation, which spanned more than two hours, Hannah insisted that she had never harmed Andrew. Hannah Overton was just an ordinary homeschool mom. We thought that he would stop turning to food for comfort when he learned that he could trust 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. Its free. Perplexed, Larry installed a baby monitor equipped with a video camera in the boys room so that he and Hannah could observe if Andrew was wandering into the kitchen at night. Funeral service for Wendell Leon Overton, 81, of Cullman, will be 11:00 a.m., Wednesday, November 24, 2021 in the Cullman Funeral Home Chapel. Nueces County District Attorney Mark Skurka had charged Overton a second time for murder after her release. 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. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to Victory Junction, 4500 Adam's Way, Randleman, NC 27317, https://victoryjunction.org or the Charlotte Humane Society, 1348 Parker Dr., Charlotte, NC 28208, https://humanesocietyofcharlotte.org, in Pete's name. The burden on the state to prove its case beyond a reasonable doubt was, Gilmore told me, perhaps less than it should have been. "After further review of all the evidence and meeting with her defense attorneys and everyone involved, my office decided that we're going to dismiss the case and include language in there that would actually indicate that she's not guilty of the charge that we charged her with, or the previous administration," Gonzalez said at the time. An attorney-client relationship will arise between you and our firm only if we specifically agree to act for you. A funeral for Andrew followed at Seaside Memorial Park, alongside Corpus Christi Bay, at which Pastor Rod Carver officiated. 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. Why Does He Get to Make That Call? Peace & Strength to your family at this time. He was preceded in. But was this churchgoing young woman a vicious child killer? Menu. According to the ministry's website, Syndeo Ministries helps provide women in prison support including Bible studies, visitation and aftercare. In anticipation of his arrival, Larry built a three-tiered bunk bed for Andrew and the two Overton boys: Isaac, who was seven years old, and Sebastian, who was two. The boy was diagnosed with a toxic salt overdose and died the following day. Or had the tragedy claimed its second victim? Forrest Wilder writes about politics and the outdoors. What a shock and a life cut too short. Zion Church of the Brethren. 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. They get to see her for two hours, once a monthtwenty-four hours in a year, Larry said. 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. According to her family tree, she married Larry D. Overton on August 9, 1997 in Texas . He touched my heart and those of my dear friends. It is unlikely that any intervention would have made a significant difference as Andrew had already taken the most critical step to save himself [by consuming] copious amounts of fluid, he wrote. The new charges were dismissed because of a myriad of factors which came about after a careful review of the previous trial, re-interviewing some of the key witnesses, consulting with some of the medical experts involved in the case, reviewing evidence adduced at recent hearings and staffing the case with the current prosecutors assigned to the case, Skurka said in a news release Wednesday. He visited us in the country and brought his serinity along. Fernandez determined that the boy had died as a result of acute sodium toxicity, with blunt force head trauma as a contributing factor. Please know that you all are surrounded by love, no matter how great your grief. It is a small thing for one who has suffered so greatly.". Hannah Overton, family celebrate her pregnancy months after she's declared innocent in boy's death, Hannah Overton, supporters chant 'Actually innocent' after capital murder dismissal, Nueces County DA to dismiss Overton case, declare woman innocent, Your California Privacy Rights / Privacy Policy. Left: Hannah Overton at the Murray Unit, west of Waco, on November 21, 2011. 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. All those that I know who knew Dabney will miss him greatly. 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.. Standing just five feet tall, with wide-set brown eyes, a girlish laugh, and a warm, easy manner, Hannah was almost childlike herself. If you would like to discuss your case with an attorney at Goldstein & Orr, then please contact us to schedule a consultation. Sending hope that your healing is swift. After dinner the kids settled down in front of the TV to watch a movie that was Isabels pick: a Japanese animated film that her brothers and sisters showed less enthusiasm for, fidgeting as they lay next to each other on the carpet. Hannahs father was the Reverend Bennie Saenz, an evangelical preacher in Corpus Christi whose fall from grace profoundly altered the course of her childhood. Dear Overton Family and Friends of Dabney. movie nights, waking up to their beautiful faces. The Court of Criminal Appeals is currently reviewing her writ, which contends that the information about Andrews gastric contents are grounds for a new trial. 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. At 4 a.m., she reports to the laundry, where she folds shirts and hands out clean clothes to inmates.