This is a case probably played out more often than we think.
Eric Gala, 57, owner of the Flamingo Motel in Fraser is accused of abusing his elderly parents and stealing from one of them, Jameson Cook writes in The Macomb Daily.
After seven weeks of trial, a Macomb County jury on Wednesday begins deliberating in his case.
The suburban paper reports:
Gala is accused of abusing Chester and the late Norma Gala by depriving them of adequate care while they resided in “Room 1” of the Flamingo on Groesbeck Highway, which Chester, now 94, opened more than 50 years ago.
Fraser police raided the room Nov. 6, 2013, where they say they found Norma tied to a chair with a vinyl strap and had dried feces and sores on her body. The room stunk and flies buzzed around. The door handles were removed. Both Norma and Chester were dehydrated and had kidney problems, prosecutors say.
Gala was initially charged with the elder abuse and later embezzlement. Gala, who was his mother’s guardian, is accused of draining $230,000 from his mother’s bank account, money she received to repair the couple’s West Bloomfield home that was damaged in a fire. Norma, who was 78 and suffering from dementia, died in 2014.
The defendants attorney said in closing arguments that his client did the best he could to care for his parents and is only guilty of not being perfect.
