TRENTON, Mich. – Charges have been dropped against two Trenton brothers who had been charged with letting their mother waste away and die in their home.
The medical examiner said Vicki Balogh, 58, died of malnutrition due to her medical condition, but her manner of death has not been determined. Wayne County prosecutors charged her sons with murder.
Recommended Videos
Officials said Balogh "looked like a Holocaust victim" after dying alone in her Trenton house. Her own sons, Grant and Gabriel Balogh, told police they were her caregivers, but they were later charged with her murder.
Police and prosecutors said the home the three shared was filthy and had very little food in it, indicating the woman was neglected.
Last October, Balogh was found not breathing, but her sons didn't call 911. One brother took her to the hospital, where Trenton police Officer Jason Davis said he saw her remains.
Balogh suffered from the disease ataxia, so she needed constant care. Experts said she was wasting away.
Defense attorneys insist Balogh wanted to live out her last days with her sons in her home, and that the case isn't murder.
Balogh died in October. Medical officials said she had been dead for at least seven hours. Hospital staff members and police officers said they saw the shocking condition the woman's body was in.
They said her body was extremely emaciated, there were sores and lesions on her skin, her skeletal structure was visible through her skin and she was filthy.
"It's a tragedy," Trenton police Officer James Nardone said. "It's not only a tragedy for the community, it's a tragedy for the family."
Grant Balogh has an OWI from about 14 years ago. Gabriel Balogh has no criminal record.