Victim in ax killings had cerebral palsy, autopsy shows

ENGLEWOOD, Colo. (KDVR) — There was a reason 35-year-old Ruth Maclaren couldn’t escape when police say her father attacked her mother, and then her, with an ax.

An autopsy report obtained by the Problem Solvers confirms Ruth Maclaren had cerebral palsy, a developmental disability that can weaken muscles and cause partial paralysis.

Arapahoe County prosecutors have charged 81-year-old Reginald Maclaren with first-degree murder in the March 25 homicides of his 70-year-old wife, Bethany, and disabled daughter.

The autopsy report helps explain why the woman did not run out of her Englewood home the moment her father started swinging an ax at his wife before attacking his daughter.

According to medical records, Ruth Maclaren…