Natashay Yvonne WARD

Classification: Murderer
Characteristics: Parricide
Number of victims: 3
Date of murders: January 2005
Date of arrest: February 4, 2005
Date of birth: 1974
Victims profile: Her three children Shanieka, 11, Latricia, 9, and Christopher Ward, 8
Method of murder: Starving to death
Location: Huntsville, Alabama, Madison County, USA
Status: Pleaded guilty to three counts of reckless murder on February 7, 2007, and was sentenced to three consecutive life sentences

The bodies of Ward's children - Shanieka Y. Ward, 11; Latrica L. Ward, 9; and Christopher O. Ward, 8 - were discovered Feb. 4, 2005, in her southwest Huntsville apartment. Huntsville police said they were starved to death.

Ward pleaded not guilty to capital murder charges because of mental disease or defect in 2006. A prosecutor said she prayed for her children as they starved to death in her dark apartment and stayed with them for at least a week after they died.

Ward pleaded guilty to three counts of reckless murder Feb. 7, 2007, and was sentenced to three consecutive life sentences by Circuit Judge Loyd H. Little Jr.

According to Alabama Pardons and Parole guidelines, Ward, who was 32 when she was sentenced, will be eligible for parole in 42 years.

Mother Accepts Plea Agreement in Deaths of Her 3 Children

Natashay Ward Accepts Plea for Killing Her Children

By Angelique Dulac - Yahoo.com

Februry 8, 2007

A woman who killed her three children in Huntsville, Alabama in February of 2005 accepted a plea agreement with the District Attorneys office on the morning of February 8, 2007.

The woman, Natashay Ward was charged with the murder of her three children Shanieka 11, Latricia 9, and Christopher who was 8. The State conceded that Ward starved her children to death. It was reported that the children had not been to school in some time and the power was turned off at the Patton Road home. Ward stated that the children had become ill and could not attend school. When an investigation into the matter took place, the officials responding found the children dead in their home.

One friend of Ward's stated that she always knew her to be a good mother. She stated that the incident was in no way the type of thing that she knew Ward to be capable of.

Ward is now 32 years of age. She received three consecutive life terms but will be eligible for parole in 45 years. The courts were preparing to start jury selection this month to see if Ward was competent to stand trial. Many people believe she was not in her right mind during the murders. Allegations that she even gave to charity while her power was turned off and her children were starving was one of many situations that caused speculation about Ward's state of mind.

The family stated that they were just pleased that the whole ordeal was over. They were not in the court room during the plea agreement or sentencing phase. The family was in the office of an attorney and said to be in prayer that Ward's life would be spared.

Ward was offered a chance to make a statement after her plea agreement but stated she had nothing further to say.

Many people in the Tennessee Valley area of Alabama where this took place have strong feelings about this trial. Many have stated that they feel the punishment did not fit the crime. They further have stated that they believe it was too lenient of punishment for taking the lives of three children.

Although in one instance the ordeal is over, many feel that justice hasn't really been done in this instance. There are so many unanswered questions surrounding this case. Although it may be shut in the eyes of the judicial system, many people are still seeking answers on why this happened.

Police: Mom Starved Kids To Death

3 Found Dead In Alabama Apartment; Police Say Mom Confessed

Associated Press

Feb. 6, 2005

HUNTSVILLE, Ala. - The mother of three children found dead in a Huntsville apartment has confessed to starving her children, police said.

Nathshay Yvonne Ward, 33, was charged with capital murder Friday in connection with the deaths of her son and two daughters. She was being held without bail.

Officers found the bodies of Shanieka Y. Ward, 11; Latricia Ward, 9; and Christopher O. Ward, 8, on the floor in three bedrooms Friday, police spokesman Wendell Johnson said.

Officials said the children had been dead for at least several days.

Investigators would not elaborate Saturday on the details of Ward's confession.

When the children were found, "they did appear malnourished," Johnson said.

Johnson said relatives told police they had been trying to visit the family for weeks but Ward would not open the door. Officials said utilities in the apartment had been turned off since Jan. 12, and managers of the apartment complex had been preparing to evict the family.

Johnson said the children had not attended school since the holiday break. Workers with the Alabama Department of Human Resources had tried to visit the apartment in December but Ward refused to let them in, he said.

Ward was single and "took care of her kids," said Leetha McCaulley, who managed the apartment complex until October.

After her car broke down last year, Ward "used to walk the kids to school every day," McCaulley said.

"It was just her and those kids," she said. "She was quiet. Paid her rent on time."

Mother Confesses To Starving 3 Children To Death

February 5, 2005

HUNTSVILLE, Ala. -- The mother of three children found dead in a Huntsville apartment Friday has confessed to starving her children, police said Saturday.

Nathshay Yvonne Ward, 33, was charged with capital murder Friday night in connection with the deaths of her son and two daughters, Sgt. Ed Cain, supervisor of the major crime unit for the Huntsville Police Department, told The Huntsville Times.

When the children were found, "they did appear malnourished," said Wendell Johnson, public affairs administrator for the Huntsville Police Department. Investigators would not elaborate on the details of Ward's confession.

Officers found the fully-clothed bodies of Shanieka Y. Ward, 11; Latricia Ward, 9; and Christopher O. Ward, 8, on the floor in three separate bedrooms of the apartment on the city's southwest side, said Johnson.

The children had been dead for at least several days, Cain said. "We're waiting on autopsies to determine the time and cause of death," he said. He said the Huntsville Police Department is working with the Madison County Coroner's office and the Alabama Department of Forensic Sciences to determine when and how the children died. Johnson said it would take up to two weeks for a full autopsy report.

Cain said authorities received a call at 2:56 p.m. Friday from the children's grandmother, whose name was not immediately available. The children had been living in the apartment with Nathshay Ward, he said.

He said investigators interviewed her after the discovery Friday but did not say what led authorities to charge her with the children's murders. Johnson said utilities in the apartment had been turned off since Jan. 12, and the children had not attended school since the holiday break.

He said family members told police that they had been trying to visit the family for weeks, but the children's mother would not open the door.

A representative of the city school system had also tried to visit the apartment in December, but Nathshay Ward refused to let them inside, Johnson said.

(The Associated Press, relying on information from a police spokesman, erroneously named the agency that attempted to visit the family in December. The spokesman says a representative of the city school system, not the Alabama Department of Human Resources, was turned away by the mother.)

Cain said the Whispering Hills apartment complex was preparing to evict the family. He told The Birmingham News that the apartment manager did a "brief look-in" on Jan. 26.

Johnson said investigators were trying to determine when the children had last been seen.