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A man and his wife have been accused of starving heir disabled son to death in an extreme case of neglect.
John V. Hoover, 44, died on June 29 after he suffered severe malnutrition and dehydration, according to an arrest affidavit.
The man’s father, John D. Hoover, 69, told the authorities that his son had not been eating regularly since April and completely stopped eating the previous four days, according to the affidavit.
According to docs that FOX17 obtained from Chattanooga Police, the father told police that he and his wife Jacqueline Hoover, 38, “would withhold food from the victim to get him to shower and tied him to a bed at night to keep him from taking food.”
The son was taken to CHI Memorial Hospital in his home state of Tennessee on June 23 and died there six days later.
According to the outlet, medical staff said it appeared to be a case of severe neglect or potential abuse.
Detectives said the victim was “obviously emaciated and had pressure sores on his person.”
When the detectives spoke with the victim’s parents, they said that their son had a mental disability.
The victim had the mental capacity of a five year old, according to his parents.
They moved in with their son to take care of him after his grandmother died, according to the affidavit.
The father allegedly admitted that his son hadn’t been taken to see a doctor since February and that him and his wife hadn’t planned any follow-up appointments since then, according to FOX17.
According to the affidavit, detectives determined that the parents “willfully and knowingly deprived the victim of dire medical attention,” based on the statements given to them.
Investigators also believe that the victim’s death is a direct cause of neglect from his parents.
Authorities have charged the man’s parents, John D. and Jacqueline with first-degree murder and aggravated neglect of a vulnerable adult, according to FOX17.
News station WDEF, had talked to the manager of the mobile home park where the Hoovers had lived in Hixson, Tennessee.
“The manager says the son would routinely walk up and down the complex, and the neighbor told me he would do so often telling people he was hungry,” the outlet reported.
(The Sun)
