LEBANON, Indiana — The parents of a man with disabilities were charged with neglect after he was rushed to the hospital and found covered with sores and his own waste.
Lloyd Maxwell and Bridget Toney were caring for their 23-year-old son, Brandon, who has spina bifida.
According to court documents, police had been called to their home on April 2, 2021 on reports of an unresponsive male.
Officers found Brandon had numerous open sores on his lower body and was covered in feces. Police noted some of the sores were deep enough they could see the bone. They also noted bugs and maggots on his body.
Brandon was taken to Witham Hospital and then moved to St. Vincent Hospital in Indianapolis for treatment.
One of the doctors caring for Brandon noted that there were mouse droppings found in some of Brandon's wounds. Doctors were concerned about flesh eating bacteria and said the wounds had grown to a point where they could not heal.
At first, doctors considered a radical amputation from Brandon's belly button down. Medical staff said Brandon had the social skills of a 10- to 12-year-old and did not have the capacity to make complex medical decisions.
In court documents, medical staff claimed Brandon would not cooperate with treatments and there was a "sense that Brandon did not want to implicate his caregiver as doing anything wrong."
As Brandon's care deteriorated, doctors moved to providing end-of-life care.
During a police investigation, it was learned an investigator with Adult Protective Services had visited Brandon's home March 30, 2021. The investigator said the home was in "deplorable" condition and unsanitary. Despite everything the investigator saw, Brandon denied wrongdoing by his parents. His legs were covered during the visit and the investigator could not see the sores. Due to Brandon's answers, the APS investigator did not have reason to remove Brandon or assist in anyway.
Brandon told investigators that his mother stopped helping with his care around Thanksgiving or Christmas of 2020 and that he told Lloyd to stop caring for him in January 2021. Brandon said the last time he could get out of bed on his own was around December 2020.
Bridget claims in court documents that Brandon would tell her he was fine and didn't need any help. Lloyd allegedly told investigators that Brandon would sometimes let Lloyd help him and sometimes would not.
Lloyd Maxwell and Bridget Toney both have initial hearings set for Dec. 21.
