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

[MsMarple]

The parents of a woman who died on a couch in their home pleaded not guilty Tuesday morning at the East Feliciana Parish Courthouse.

Clay and Sheila Fletcher are facing a charge of second-degree murder in connection to the death of their daughter, Lacey Fletcher.

Parents plead not guilty in death of daughter found on couch with feces around it; trial date rescheduled

The parents of a woman who died on a couch in their home pleaded not guilty Tuesday, July 19, at the East Feliciana Parish Courthouse.

www.wafb.com

Next hearing on September 6. The trial is currently scheduled for February 6, 2023.

 

[ElizB]

I assume they are out on bail?

 

[caradana]

A codependent couple for whom image mattered over all else, and who slow-boiled like frogs or lobsters in this insane environment of their own denialist creation. After years of it it stopped seeming horrifying or crazy or even smelly. She had a condition, for sure. We can theorize but we will never factually know. Her parents feared shame and feared becoming societal pariahs in these communities they were in (suffice it to say this was not like Massachusetts, NY, California, where these dxs result in a blanket of support). There are frightening analogies to be made of past wartimes (did it smell near the camps or were the neighbors just used to it?). I feel for the respective counsels for both these parents, assuming in advance that their cases will be split at trial. Talk about defending mentally ill - I’d probably attempt a defense that the parents were as or more ill than the child. I’m not sure there is any defensible legal structure for this one. Blessed be whoever rang the bell on insanity and said, if you don’t call the police, I will. Now. Strong human, that one.

 

[BayouBelle_LA]

A codependent couple for whom image mattered over all else, and who slow-boiled like frogs or lobsters in this insane environment of their own denialist creation. After years of it it stopped seeming horrifying or crazy or even smelly. She had a condition, for sure. We can theorize but we will never factually know. Her parents feared shame and feared becoming societal pariahs in these communities they were in (suffice it to say this was not like Massachusetts, NY, California, where these dxs result in a blanket of support). There are frightening analogies to be made of past wartimes (did it smell near the camps or were the neighbors just used to it?). I feel for the respective counsels for both these parents, assuming in advance that their cases will be split at trial. Talk about defending mentally ill - I’d probably attempt a defense that the parents were as or more ill than the child. I’m not sure there is any defensible legal structure for this one. Blessed be whoever rang the bell on insanity and said, if you don’t call the police, I will. Now. Strong human, that one.

There are horrific abuse cases all over the country. The abusers are to blame . What camps are you referring to? This is a residential area.

 

[caradana]

There are horrific abuse cases all over the country. The abusers are to blame . What camps are you referring to? This is a residential area.

Hi BayouBelle, I was making a WW2 reference. Hope this helps.

 

[Dotta]

Lacey might have suffered from severe form of depression.

When getting out of bed is just too much - even to go to the toilet - not to mention going to the kitchen to prepare a meal.

Psychiatric help is needed asap in such cases.
MOO

Can't Get Out of Bed From Depression? 11 Tips — Talkspace

Feeling depressed and finding it hard to get out of bed despite your best efforts? Discover these 11 encouraging tips for when you’re depressed in bed.

www.talkspace.com

 

[stonedgnome]

I still keep coming back to this case. Lacey deserved better and I genuinely have such a hard time believing her parents testimonies that they "cared for and cleaned her sores." There is just no way. The way she was found is a huge indicator that she has not moved from that spot, so how could her parents do wound care without moving her to access the wounds?? This makes me so angry.

 

[Blondie in Spokane]

Major update in couch crater death of recluse found fused to feces-covered sofa

AN UPDATE in the horrific case of a reclusive 36-year-old woman, whose body was found in a couch crater riddled with maggots and feces, was revealed in court. Lacey Fletcher, 36, died in her parent…

www.the-sun.com

Major update? Not really but thought I’d post this anyway…..

 

[OllyInTheTrolley]

Major update in couch crater death of recluse found fused to feces-covered sofa

AN UPDATE in the horrific case of a reclusive 36-year-old woman, whose body was found in a couch crater riddled with maggots and feces, was revealed in court. Lacey Fletcher, 36, died in her parent…

www.the-sun.com

Major update? Not really but thought I’d post this anyway…..

Just a warning there's some graphic pictures in this article, although they seem to be blurred.

 

[Shamrock1]

Does the update contain anything about whether Lacey suffered a brain injury or similar in the decade or so before she died? That’s been my guess as well as my hope. Can’t read those articles with my littles on my lap.

 

[MsMarple]

Major update in couch crater death of recluse found fused to feces-covered sofa

AN UPDATE in the horrific case of a reclusive 36-year-old woman, whose body was found in a couch crater riddled with maggots and feces, was revealed in court. Lacey Fletcher, 36, died in her parent…

www.the-sun.com

Major update? Not really but thought I’d post this anyway…..

Yeah, it's just a repeat of the Tuesday hearing. But something that continues to burn me up is the quote from D.A. Sam D'Aquilla that a number of msm sources also reported:

The District Attorney said: “They lost a daughter. I have - not much - but I have a little compassion for them,” he said.

WTH? A little compassion? How can you feel compassion for parents who deliberately chose to neglect their child - for decades? Would he have said the same if Lacey was 5 years old? It seems like the coroner, Dr. Ewell Bickham, fully grasps the situation, but do other officials?

I'm complaining about this because I'm concerned that the parents are going to end up cutting a favorable plea deal, due in part to the fact that they're "elderly" and in part because Lacey was an adult. Neither mitigates their immoral decision to watch their child decompose on a stinking couch for years and do nothing to even ease her certain pain.

At least the DA followed his remark with "I think we have to send a message. You need to take care of your people better than you do your animals." Hopefully that means he's willing to go to bat for Lacey instead of just clearing his caseload. Bah.

 

[Laughing]

There are horrific abuse cases all over the country. The abusers are to blame . What camps are you referring to? This is a residential area.

There are frightening analogies to be made of past wartimes (did it smell near the camps or were the neighbors just used to it?)

Not the OP, but I read this as a reference to World War II -- wartimes -- and concentration camps, where non-Aryans were detained, starved, tortured, gassed, shot, forced to dig their own graves, interred in mass graves, etc etc etc.

Did those living near the concentration camps notice, ignore it, live in denial, what? Yes to all those responses, and some left the country. Not looking for a link, plenty of scholarship.

In addition, many of the concentration camps were built in sparsely populated areas. Likely to ensure privacy for the atrocious events happening there on a daily basis.

How did the parents of this ill person ignore her condition? There was no wall between the parents and Lacey, not even a curtain.

How did they ignore the smells, if nothing else? Likely denial.

jmho ymmv lrr

 

[FlossyMay]

I have compassion for Lacey. These parents lost a daughter because they killed her by leaving her to rot and not lifting one finger to save her.

 

[TheLoadedGoat]

When we hear of cases where there has been neglect, you rarely see educated, seemingly normal people involved in their community and in relationships with many others. These people had so many resources to help Lacey. They did not have any other children to distract them or overwhelm them. I am not looking for an excuse but like all of us, oh my gosh, how do you even come home to that every single day and not know you need to get help? How does ONE of them at least not look at the other and say, "We really need to do something." I really want to hear from the person that got them to call the police. I am sure they were totally freaked out so I want to know what they said to the Fletchers that made them call, yet not flee or really act like anything was wrong. None of us could let someone suffer for a minute or a day much less years. These people had money to take her anywhere. At what point did they just decide to ignore her. Did they think she would snap out of it? When your child (regardless of age) withdraws, refuses to move, what part of you feels helpless to the point you just let them be? We all see parents that let their kids run the show and just shrug their shoulders but she was just ignored. They decorated a damn Christmas tree for goodness sakes! Did they talk to her all those years as if she was present of mind? Did they buy her gifts? Since as far as we know, no one went into the home prior to her death other than the parents, that shows they were hiding her, thus they knew it was wrong. There is absolutely nothing that will make a difference but I just want to hear from the parents, see them explain what was going through their minds. SMDH

 

[typical_vacation]

It’s a small house - under 1800sqft. The stench! I wonder if they ever ordered pizza…perhaps there’s an adult who remembers that weird place he delivered to back in high school. Or trick-or-treaters? I wonder if they had landscapers, gutter-cleaners, power-washers, painters. The exterior looks well-maintained. Did anyone even get a peek, or were the curtains always drawn?

Sorry, I am not caught up fully caught up on the thread but this is what I had to comment on. just in case I miss any other discussion.

Unless they had her secluded somewhere in the house(which it doesn’t sound like), did they really have no one there in TWELVE YEARS? I’ve been in my apartment for a year and a half and I’ve had a ceiling fan get replaced, a part on my fridge replaced, and other small things. they never had to have someone fix the water heater, AC, fix anything electrical, or anything more manual that the casual homeowner couldn’t DIY??
What about electric and gas meter readers? I doubt they’ve been on remote meters for the past 12 years. The mind Boggles.

 

[RaspberryMama]

Sorry, I am not caught up fully caught up on the thread but this is what I had to comment on. just in case I miss any other discussion.

Unless they had her secluded somewhere in the house(which it doesn’t sound like), did they really have no one there in TWELVE YEARS? I’ve been in my apartment for a year and a half and I’ve had a ceiling fan get replaced, a part on my fridge replaced, and other small things. they never had to have someone fix the water heater, AC, fix anything electrical, or anything more manual that the casual homeowner couldn’t DIY??
What about electric and gas meter readers? I doubt they’ve been on remote meters for the past 12 years. The mind Boggles.

I really don't think they did, unless we're looking at a whole community covering this up. She was right in the living room, on the couch. Who would come in and see that (or smell it) and just go away minding their own business? Surely within 12 years someone would have called the police. I think they probably went to great lengths to keep people from visiting.

Now I'm curious about the layout of the house. Would it be possible to let a repairman in a back door and straight down the stairs so that he'd never see the living room?

In any case, they obviously knew they were in the wrong. I can't imagine how they plan to explain this away. Unfortunately they are both out on bail and have time to invent a story together.

 

[TheLoadedGoat]

I really don't think they did, unless we're looking at a whole community covering this up. She was right in the living room, on the couch. Who would come in and see that (or smell it) and just go away minding their own business? Surely within 12 years someone would have called the police. I think they probably went to great lengths to keep people from visiting.

Now I'm curious about the layout of the house. Would it be possible to let a repairman in a back door and straight down the stairs so that he'd never see the living room?

In any case, they obviously knew they were in the wrong. I can't imagine how they plan to explain this away. Unfortunately they are both out on bail and have time to invent a story together.

I'm not disagreeing that they may be trying to concoct a story but there is absolutely no explanation for what they did - watch their child suffer and die.

 

[MsMarple]

I really don't think they did, unless we're looking at a whole community covering this up. She was right in the living room, on the couch. Who would come in and see that (or smell it) and just go away minding their own business? Surely within 12 years someone would have called the police. I think they probably went to great lengths to keep people from visiting.

Now I'm curious about the layout of the house. Would it be possible to let a repairman in a back door and straight down the stairs so that he'd never see the living room?

In any case, they obviously knew they were in the wrong. I can't imagine how they plan to explain this away. Unfortunately they are both out on bail and have time to invent a story together.

IMO people often are quick to accept the flimsiest of excuses and don't necessarily investigate. IMO there's a reluctance to butt into other people's business. Maybe to avoid embarrassing them.

Who wants to be responsible for telling someone their house stinks? Plus, an explanation of caring for an invalid could have been sufficient for a casual visitor like a repair person. After all, these were educated professionals - who would suspect?

John Wayne Gacy hid dozens of bodies in his crawl space, which not only stank in the house but the smell also permeated the neighborhood. He claimed it was from a broken sewer pipe and people believed it - until the bodies were unearthed.

IMO now that the parents' crime is exposed whatever story they come up with is going to be a hard sell. I suspect they'll look for a deal and hopefully the community will put pressure on the DA to serve justice for Lacey.

 

[Laughing]

Might be a 'family room' or 'den' with a door, referred to as living room?

jmho ymmv lrr

 

[TheLoadedGoat]

Wasn't there supposed to be a status conference on September 6th? Does anybody know where to see if that happened?