Cops: Woman, 80, left to waste away in chair

BOSTON (AP) — Five Massachusetts residents have been charged with leaving an 80-year-old family matriarch to lie for more than a month in a reclining chair in her own urine and feces.

The Fall River woman is in critical condition. Prosecutors said Wednesday she had a blood infection and severe bedsores, including one so deep that tendons could be seen through her decomposing skin.

Police found the woman Saturday after a family member called 911. A spokesman for Bristol District Attorney Sam Sutter says paramedics found the woman drifting in and out of consciousness in the recliner.

The victim’s daughter, son-in-law and three grandchildren were arrested Monday on charges of permitting injury to an elderly or disabled person.

Their lawyers did not return calls seeking comment.