A 68-year-old woman in Florida has been sentenced to prison for the death of her elderly mother, who was starved and neglected so severely that medical personnel compared her condition to that of a World War II concentration camp prisoner.
Seventh Judicial Circuit Judge Dawn D. Nichols ordered Kim Zaheer to serve six years in a state correctional facility for her role in the 2018 death of Frances Hildegard King. However, Zaheer was credited with more than 4 ½ years of time already served, meaning she has just over one year of detention remaining on her sentence. Following her release, Zaheer will be required to spend an additional 10 years on probation.
Due to the nature of the case and Zaheer’s own health challenges, the state attorney’s office waived state sentencing guidelines, which called for a minimum of more than 11 years in prison. The sentence was handed down after Zaheer pleaded no contest to one count of aggravated manslaughter in September.
On December 5, 2018, at approximately 11:46 a.m., deputies with the Flagler County Sheriff’s Office responded to a call regarding an unresponsive elderly female, later identified as King. Upon arrival, first responders encountered a grisly scene.
King was described as “cold to the touch” and very malnourished, showing signs of apparent rigor mortis. Both she and her clothing were covered in fecal matter, including rat droppings on and beneath the body. She was found dead in a bed, clothed in a garbage bag used as a diaper, according to the charging affidavit.
The conditions of the home were described as “extremely bad,” with officers noting the environment was dirty and the odor unbearable.
Medical examiner’s notes detailed that King’s eyes appeared to have dehydrated back into her head. Personnel from the funeral home who removed the body told investigators they had “never observed someone in the same or similar condition” to King’s.
One body removal specialist stated that King’s condition resembled that of prisoners in a concentration camp, a comparison the medical examiner agreed with.
The medical examiner determined the cause of death to be “severe emaciation” and emphysematous cystitis, a rare infection of the bladder wall most commonly caused by E. coli.
This tragic case highlights the severe consequences of elder neglect and abuse.
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https://lawandcrime.com/crime/odor-was-unbearable-woman-starved-and-neglected-elderly-mom-found-emaciated-with-eyes-dehydrated-back-into-her-head/