Former Darien Woman Dies from Injuries in Stamford Beating

By BARBARA HEINS and DAVID GURLIACCI (Patch Staff)

Maryanne Anderson, 76, a former Darien resident who police say was beaten by her son at her Stamford home on Monday, died of her injuries Thursday afternoon.

Anderson previously had lived for years on West Avenue in Darien, where she raised four boys and a girl, according to a Hearst Newspapers report.

The Stamford Police Department issued a written statement saying it was “with sadness” the department was announcing her death. The attack came after Mrs. Anderson and another son, John Anderson, 50, confronted his brother, Timothy Anderson “about not taking his medications.”

Mrs. Anderson was taken to Stamford Hospital for treatment, police said, and “During her treatment she took a turn for the worse where the doctors found that she had significant bleeding on the brain sustained in the attack. She went for emergency surgery to relieve cranium pressure and was placed in a coma and on a ventilator.”

It was about 4:30 p.m. Monday when the Stamford Police Department Dispatch Center received multiple calls for an assault in progress at 58 Sleepy Hollow Ln. When officers arrived at the home, they found the victim “badly beaten,” police said.

Despite her injuries, the victim was able to tell officers that her 42-year-old son, assaulted her and fled from the house and through the woods located at the end of the street, before officers arrived.

She arrived at was treated at Stamford Hospital in “grave” condition, police said. There, doctors had to surgically remove a part of her brain to ease brain swelling following the Monday attack.

A short time later, officers captured the son, identified as Timothy F. Anderson, 42, of 58 Sleepy Hollow Ln. He was charged with first-degree assault of an elderly person, first-degree unlawful restraint, third-degree assault and disorderly conduct.

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At his arraignment on Tuesday, bond for Anderson was increased from $100,000 to $500,000 and he remains in custody, according to the Connecticut Judicial Branch website. He is scheduled to return to state Superior Court in Stamford on April 27.

As of Thursday afternoon, Timothy Anderson remained in custody.

In a statement, Lt. Diedrich Hohn said, “The Stamford Police Department would like to express our condolences to the Anderson family during this difficult time. An autopsy is planned for tomorrow at the States Medical Examiner’s Office. The SPD Detective bureau will be conferring with the States Attorney’s Office to upgrade the charges.”

The woman’s death is Stamford’s second homicide of the year. Stamford resident Antonio Muralles, 52, was fatally stabbed on March 12. He was attacked even though he apologized after accidentally spilling coffee onto a teen when he walked out of McDonald’s at the corner of Bedford and Broad streets. Three suspects are in custody including two teens.