EVANSVILLE, Ind. — An Evansville woman is facing multiple felony charges after police discovered two dependent adults living in severe neglect inside an apartment on Lincoln Avenue.
Officers were called to the 8100 block of Lincoln Avenue on May 1 after an apartment manager reported concerns about a man inside one of the units. When police entered the residence, they found an elderly man and his adult son in what investigators described as “extremely unsanitary and dangerous conditions.”
According to the police affidavit, the elderly man was found frail, weak, and wearing clothing soiled with feces, lying on a pillow that also had feces on it. His adult son — described as developmentally delayed and medically fragile — was discovered on a mattress covered in feces and appeared disoriented and unable to care for himself.
Both men were transported to Deaconess Hospital for immediate medical treatment.
Police identified Kathryn Payton, the elderly man’s daughter, as the caregiver responsible for both individuals. Investigators say Payton admitted she had been aware of the conditions for several days. She told officers she had been “telling them to clean themselves,” despite acknowledging that her father could not bathe or care for himself without assistance.
Payton also admitted her brother had been sick for nearly a week, but she did not seek medical care for him. According to the affidavit, she told officers she had taken away the men’s television as punishment for not cleaning themselves.
Payton was arrested at the scene and is now facing two counts of Neglect of a Dependent, both felonies under Indiana law.
The investigation remains ongoing.
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