LA - Lacey Fletcher 36, GRAPHIC, disabled, found dead, on couch for years, Jan'22 *Parents arrested*

[trujac]

I have a feeling these two placed the potty chair and baby wipes there and told the victim to use them. They obviously didn't help her to get off the sofa or clean her themselves. They strike me as prideful and stubborn people. I'm sure they blame her for this whole situation.

Yes, her parents don't appear to have been caregivers at the stage of Lacey's life when she needed the most support and direction. They seemed have given up on Lacey when she was a young teenager. It will be interesting to hear Lacey's parents side of the story...the events and the reasons for them need and should be told in a court of law where the public can hear and understand fully what happened, imo. I hope the parents aren't given a plea deal. Those in power in the community where the Fletcher's live might want to quickly brush this gruesome and horribly sad situation under the rug in order to minimize any collateral fallout. Nothing seems to indicate that the parents made any effort to provide Lacey with any activities that she would have been comfortable with participating...as I understand it, no one saw or heard from her after she was around 16 years old. I think this story resonates with many people because similar unconscionable situations are happening everyday, and there's also a lot of people who managed to escape a very painful relationship with their own school and parents.

 

[Lilibet]

Wonder why they stopped emailing?
No response?
I find it odd none of her friends went to her house to see if she was ok after they suddenly stopped getting emails back from her?
JMO

We don’t know the answers, of course. But to speculate…Maybe Lacey (or her parents) changed her email and there was no way to keep emailing. Perhaps they did go to her house and were told that Lacey no longer wanted to or could keep in touch due to her mental “condition.” The way her parents have portrayed themselves as victims, I can imagine that they would elicit sympathy for themselves from Lacey’s friends in that case.

Even if it occurred to one of Lacey’s friends to ask LE to do a “wellness check” I‘m not sure how far LE would or could go if rebuffed by Mom or Dad. These folks were known and respected in the community and Mom had ties to LE. As far as anyone knew, no laws had been broken, so LE wouldn’t have probable cause for a search warrant. The laws that protect all of us from things like “unreasonable search” also protect those who are able to fly under the radar.

 

[passionflower]

Did Lacey recieve ss disability checks? Her parents get money or perks from her disability?

 

[Fika]

Did Lacey recieve ss disability checks? Her parents get money or perks from her disability?

I wondered about that as well.
How does it work in the US with disability checks? IF all speculation of course they were getting money for her disability wasn’t it supposed to be checked by authorities? Doctor confirmations, medical tests etc? If she was getting disability money shouldn’t there be follow ups for her? noticeable she is not seeing doctor for years?
I don’t know how those things works but I think here you have to constantly be under doctor care to receive money for yourself or someone in family.

 

[trujac]

We don’t know the answers, of course. But to speculate…Maybe Lacey (or her parents) changed her email and there was no way to keep emailing. Perhaps they did go to her house and were told that Lacey no longer wanted to or could keep in touch due to her mental “condition.” The way her parents have portrayed themselves as victims, I can imagine that they would elicit sympathy for themselves from Lacey’s friends in that case.

Even if it occurred to one of Lacey’s friends to ask LE to do a “wellness check” I‘m not sure how far LE would or could go if rebuffed by Mom or Dad. These folks were known and respected in the community and Mom had ties to LE. As far as anyone knew, no laws had been broken, so LE wouldn’t have probable cause for a search warrant. The laws that protect all of us from things like “unreasonable search” also protect those who are able to fly under the radar.

yes, it's possible her parents isolated her by changing her email account. In a Daily Mail article published last week a neighborhood man gives a detailed overview of what he knew about Lacey, and said she was outside her home still exercising age 21...the last time he saw her. Also, he confirms that she was very smart but started to change around age 14 during the 9th grade--thinking differently than her peers and withdrawing socially. Interestingly, he has some sympathy for Lacey's parents: "I don't think they are cold blooded murderers. I think they made some bad decisions." Neighbors reveal Lacey Fletcher was last seen in public 15 years ago

 

[trujac]

I wondered about that as well.
How does it work in the US with disability checks? IF all speculation of course they were getting money for her disability wasn’t it supposed to be checked by authorities? Doctor confirmations, medical tests etc? If she was getting disability money shouldn’t there be follow ups for her? noticeable she is not seeing doctor for years?
I don’t know how those things works but I think here you have to constantly be under doctor care to receive money for yourself or someone in family.

From my experience with SSI once you are diagnosed with a permanent disability with no expected changes and verified by a social security physician you are not required to continuously verify your permanent disability. You are required to report any changes to your income.

 

[trujac]

I totally agree with your statement. My hunky meter goes off to abuse before she got bad. Maybe pregnancy? Who knows! To grab a child out of school withdrawn from the world!

Yes, and I really hope a trial takes place so the whole issue of why Lacey quit school after 9th grade is fully examined from her teacher's and school friends viewpoint. The idea that possible sexual trauma occurred, which seriously impaired Lacey's ability to function socially, could explain her sudden personality change and eventual isolation. It's also possibile she was experiencing depression and wasn't treated for it.

 

[GoneGoldfishin']

I wondered about that as well.
How does it work in the US with disability checks? IF all speculation of course they were getting money for her disability wasn’t it supposed to be checked by authorities? Doctor confirmations, medical tests etc? If she was getting disability money shouldn’t there be follow ups for her? noticeable she is not seeing doctor for years?
I don’t know how those things works but I think here you have to constantly be under doctor care to receive money for yourself or someone in family.

Experience with children in my family (my son and nephews) has been varied..some did not have to do any further review after initial qualification, others have had multiple requests for qualification/continued services several years later. However, all are followed by a case manager in their respective states' disability offices, which again require at least yearly in-person visits and quarterly telephone check ins. Also, there is a change in status once the child becomes an adult- as a child SSI is dependent on the parent/guardian's income but as an adult it is dependent on the person's income or lack thereof. Moo.

 

[Dotta]

I think that organisations like Autism Society should closely monitor this case.

To highlight the problems and discrimination against the disabled people.

And check if Justice is done for Lacey.

 

[Tony1902]

Louisiana doesn't have the same laws as the rest of the US. It has French Colonial Napoleonic Code, which some historians believe was loosely based on the Castillian Siete Partidas, intoroduced during its Louisiana Colonial period.

 

[BeckyF]

Well said.

 

[BeckyF]

Deleted, duplicate

 

[Goecke]

I'm on SSI and in my experience there's a yearly review you have to complete in which you explain changes in income, if you've moved, if you receive any other sort of government aid like food stamps, etc. This can all be done over the phone.
I don't know how things would work with a 'dependent' adult (if Lacey was considered dependent, there would be a legal process for this, too). I wouldn't be surprised if Lacey wasn't receiving any sort of government benefits since the nature of her disability/diagnosis is so up in the air.

 

[trujac]

I'm on SSI and in my experience there's a yearly review you have to complete in which you explain changes in income, if you've moved, if you receive any other sort of government aid like food stamps, etc. This can all be done over the phone.
I don't know how things would work with a 'dependent' adult (if Lacey was considered dependent, there would be a legal process for this, too). I wouldn't be surprised if Lacey wasn't receiving any sort of government benefits since the nature of her disability/diagnosis is so up in the air.

Yes, typically if a disabled SSI recipient requires housing and home health assistance--those Federally/State funds require a State Social Security case manager to monitored the beneficiary so the rules and requirements for receiving those funds are enforced--Section 8 is part of that program. Lacey's housing needs and care were provided by her parents. She might have received SSI since she was not able to work--but I agree, it seems like her parents opted to provide for her needs without government assistance--taking funds from the government to support their daughter doesn't seem like it would fit their economic background or public image either. Another question I have--was she adopted? In Lacey's obituary it said she was loved by many family and friends--she did have extended family relatively close by. One last thought, after reading a few articles about Slaughter, LA--the place seems to have an element of the wild frontier still there.

 

[BeckyF]

I can’t even describe my disgust at what happened here.

Many, many years ago I worked in a nursing home as a nurses aide. This was well before stricter regulations were in place regarding long term care. Some relatives just dumped their family member off to die. As aides, we did basic patient care. Many patients had horrific bed sores. And I do mean horrific. I still remember what they looked like to this day. If Lacey had sores like this she had to have been in just awful pain. What did they do, toss her an aspirin? She was simply a throwaway person to her own parents just like those poor nursing home patients, except she was much younger.

I just don’t even know what to say.

MOO

 

[Dotta]

I can’t even describe my disgust at what happened here.

Many, many years ago I worked in a nursing home as a nurses aide. This was well before stricter regulations were in place regarding long term care. Some relatives just dumped their family member off to die. As aides, we did basic patient care. Many patients had horrific bed sores. And I do mean horrific. I still remember what they looked like to this day. If Lacey had sores like this she had to have been in just awful pain. What did they do, toss her an aspirin? She was simply a throwaway person to her own parents just like those poor nursing home patients, except she was much younger.

I just don’t even know what to say.

MOO

Even worse -
she had maggots!!! in these sores and died of sepsis,
which means whole body infection with symptoms: extreme pain, fever, confusion among others.

 

[natureofdust]

It is wild to me how her parents seemed so "normal" given what was going on at home. She wasn't even shut away in a basement or back room...somewhere they could shut a door and ignore and go through their day without having to see what they were doing to her. She was right there in the living room where they watched her deteriorate every single day. Bafflingly cruel.

 

[BeckyF]

Even worse -
she had maggots!!! in these sores and died of sepsis,
which means whole body infection with symptoms: extreme pain, fever, confusion among others.

And organ failure, day by day.

 

[FlossyMay]

Even worse -
she had maggots!!! in these sores and died of sepsis,
which means whole body infection with symptoms: extreme pain, fever, confusion among others.

This will sound gross, but maggots eat poop and dead flesh. They were clearly the only ones in that house trying to clean her up. What does that say about her parents?

 

[tlcya]

This will sound gross, but maggots eat poop and dead flesh. They were clearly the only ones in that house trying to clean her up. What does that say about her parents?

sad but true, GRAPHIC
the maggots were there to eat the dead and dying flesh, they don't bother living healthy tissue. My dad had diabetic neuropathy and towards the end of his life developed horrible sores on his feet and ankles. I'll never forget when maggots were in his wound and we (family members) freaked out and the visiting nurses advised not interfering with or removing them as they were actually helping to debrid the wounds by clearing the dead tissue so the living tissue might have a chance to heal.


that poor girl, I don't know that I will ever be able to forget this particular case. I can't imagine. What it was like to be her. There day after day, sinking into that couch. Just horrific.