Severely Disabled 13-Year-Old Died From Neglect

By Margaret Lyons in News on May 22, 2008 8:25PM

Just in case your faith in humanity was in a healthy zone, consider the case of Jaylen Brown, a severely disabled 13-year-old who died last week from sepsis. His mother and two nurses have been charged with felony neglect, and a Trib story today outlines just how severe the kid's suffering was.

When the boy with cerebral palsy, mental retardation and severe scoliosis was brought to a hospital March 17, he had ulcers on his shoulder, ear, legs and hand. The ulcer on his lower back was a crater, seeping pus. A black, crusted patch dotted his tongue. His fingernails had grown long and dirty. His skin was flaky, and his hair was matted.

"The level of neglect is some of the most severe we have seen," a University of Chicago doctor noted.

In March, Brown was brought to Comer Children's Hospital in dangerously bad condition.

His mother initially told doctors that she fed her son after the nurses left at night, according to records. Then she said he was fed only by the nurses.

"This is extremely inconsistent and disturbing," a doctor noted.

The mother said she had not bathed her son in more than a year or seen him without clothes on....

Jaylen did not have a wheelchair or braces, which his doctor called "basic care for a child with cerebral palsy."

The two nurses say they reported the alleged neglect to their supervisor, who denies that she heard any complaints about Brown's care, but they were also legally required to call DCFS, which they didn't do. Brown's death has been ruled a homicide. [Trib]