JOPLIN, Mo. (AP) - A 52-year-old Joplin man who authorities said allowed his mother to lie in filthy conditions while she was unable to care for herself was sentenced to probation after pleading guilty to a misdemeanor.
Michael Lightner pleaded guilty Monday to elder abuse and was sentenced to one year in jail, which was suspended. He will serve two years of unsupervised probation. He had originally been charged with felony second-degree domestic assault after his arrest March 27, The Joplin Globe reported.
On March 7, officers found his mother mentally confused and unable to care for herself, lying on a bed covered in human waste and with bedsores, according to a probable cause affidavit.
Medical staff estimated it may have been a year since her last bath or shower. She was taken to a hospital, where the staff diagnosed her with acute cystitis, a bladder infection. Medical records indicated she hadn’t been to a doctor for about four years.
According to the affidavit, she told police her son gave her with food but would sometimes leave her alone for long periods of time.
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