By: Jon Agee NP

Jon Agee NP — Thu, 20 Mar 2008 20:25:30 +0000

Wait a minute. First, she was in his home as a guest. By definition, he wanted her there and she, evidently, did not wish to leave. Hence, there appears to be no coercion or confinement issue to defend.
Second, if the rumors are true that both have some form of “mental impairment”, then there begs a question of who is the caretaker of the other. He may be intellectually impaired, while she is perhaps agoraphobic. So where does dependent or mistreatment interplay? Is there a legal guardianship at play? Doubtful. He fed her, watered her and but his explicit statement while cooperating with investigators, “I tried to coax her out every day, but she said maybe tomorrow”.
Third, psychologist Tom Szasz espouses that everyone has a right to be crazy, but they are subject to the consequences just like everyone else. Fortunately, the outcomes of her impairment were limited to herself, and not to the detriment of others.
Fourth, even if he had called a day or two after the inception of her “sit in”, what legal imperative could have been invoked to remove someone who is not immediately dangerous to themselves, others or so gravely impaired so as to not be able to care for basic needs? While sho would not leave the bathroom, the BF’s well intended intervention of feeding her, hence enabling the dysfunction, is not mistreatment. Therapeutically, it may have been better to not feed her, subsequently “starve her out”, however he is not a mental health worker capable to make those decisions.
I, for one, would volunteer to be defense expert witness with what I have read in multiple sources. The fact that the prosecutors had to make a charge “best fit” to statute suggests that they really have no case and are railroading an, at best, extremely simple man.

By: TexPD4Parity

TexPD4Parity — Sat, 15 Mar 2008 13:03:05 +0000

I think more than a few hours would be reason enough to call 911. Did she not have any friends or relatives who were curious about her? What a tragedy.

By: SPO

SPO — Fri, 14 Mar 2008 02:47:02 +0000

Apparently, there are some mental deficiencies with the boyfriend and the woman has serious problems. This is a really sad story. The woman may be confined to a wheelchair.

By: Gideon

Gideon — Fri, 14 Mar 2008 00:32:17 +0000

What’s your threshold? One day? Two? I think after 24 hours I might think something’s wrong.

By: Adamslaw

Adamslaw — Fri, 14 Mar 2008 00:08:08 +0000

It took the boyfriend TWO YEARS to figure out something was wrong? One would think the stench of an two year old unwashed body would have compelled him to take action earlier.

By: Egon Chronz

Egon Chronz — Thu, 13 Mar 2008 07:23:31 +0000