Scathing Obituary: Marianne Theresa Johnson's Children Highlight Years Of Child Abuse
When siblings Patrick and Katherine Reddick were thinking of a way to commemorate the passing of their mother Marianna Theresa Johnson-Reddick, they could only think of one possible solution — a scathing obituary shaming the Reno woman for years of unreported child abuse.
The three-paragraph diatribe that states the Reddick children are not mourning their mother’s death, but rather “celebrating” it, was submitted anonymously to the Reno-Gazette Journal through a self-service online portal. Johnson-Reddick passed away on Aug. 30 at the age of 78 at the Reno nursing home ManorCare Health Services.
The obituary states:
“On behalf of her children whom she so abrasively exposed to her evil and violent life, we celebrate her passing from this earth and hope she lives in the afterlife reliving each gesture of violence, cruelty, and shame that she delivered on her children. Her surviving children will now live the rest of their lives with the peace of knowing their nightmare finally has some form of closure.”
Patrick Reddick says he and his sister have been estranged from their mother for over 30 years after six of her eight children were admitted to the Nevada Children’s Home between 1963 and 1964, the Associated Press reported. The pair grew up in a Carson City orphanage with four other siblings.
After the obituary was published in the Tuesday edition of the Reno newspaper and online at RGJ.com, the candid obit was removed by president and publisher John Maher. Maher said the woman’s death was confirmed by the Washoe County Public Guardian’s office.
“The obituary you reference was a paid placement that was submitted via our self-service, online portal. It appeared in today's Reno Gazette-Journal and also online,” Maher told Gawker in a statement. “We've removed the online listing of this obituary as we continue our review of the circumstances surrounding its placement. Once we've completed our review, we'll determine what, if any, further actions are required.”
Katherine and Patrick say the only reason they felt compelled to publicly reveal their turbulent past was so they could shed light on the morbid issue of child abuse. According to Safe Horizon, 3.6 million reports of child abuse are recorded in the United States each year. In 2010, 1,537 children died in the U.S. as a result of abuse or neglect.
The obituary concludes:
“Most of us have found peace in helping those who have been exposed to child abuse and hope this message of her final passing can revive our message that abusing children is unforgiveable, shameless, and should not be tolerated in a ‘humane society.’ Our greatest wish now, is to stimulate a national movement that mandates a purposeful and dedicated war against child abuse in the United States of America.”