Woman found covered in feces, son charged

updated 7:20 a.m. ET July 7, 2007

MIAMI - A man was charged with elderly abuse after his mother was found covered in red ants and feces in a trailer with no electricity, authorities said Friday.

Lillian V. Smith, 83, was found Tuesday in the abandoned trailer with no running water or bathroom, and died Thursday at a hospital, authorities said.

Sherrill “Bubba” Smith, 49, who shared the trailer with his mother, was charged with elderly abuse, authorities said.

The son inserted newspapers into her to stop feces from spilling onto the bed, The Miami Herald reported, citing a police report.

Doctors said the elder Smith also had a fractured right leg that had not been treated, the arrest report said. An autopsy showed the woman died of natural causes, Miami-Dade Police spokesman Roy Rutland said.

Sherrill Smith is being held in jail on a $15,000 bond. It was not immediately known if he had an attorney.

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