Staff Report

Lora Lynn Harris

WARSAW — A Warsaw woman was recently arrested on a neglect charge after failing to report her son’s death, which was ruled a homicide.

Lora Lynn Harris, 61, 223 W. Jefferson St. Apartment 7, Warsaw, is charged with neglect of a dependent resulting in death, a level 1 felony; and failure to report human remains, a class A misdemeanor.

On Jan. 4, 2021, Warsaw Police officers responded to a possible death at a residence. The caller, later identified as Harris, said the body was blue and cold to the touch.

Upon arrival at the home, officers spoke with Harris, who said her son was deceased. Officers observed the body and it was immediately apparent Harris’s son had been dead for an extended amount of time.

According to court documents, Harris had placed a blanket over the body prior to officers’ arrival, but the decedent’s legs and left arm were exposed and appeared to be extremely malnourished. Officers also saw several bugs crawling from the bed and floor onto the body. A small pile of fecal matter near the body and there was also a noticeable odor of urine in the room, the report said.

Harris told officers she lived in the home with her son and a woman. She said her son was disabled but was unable to provide officers or medics with a diagnosis or medical history.

Harris later told officers that her son was born blind with cataracts and was physically disabled. While officers were gathering information about the deceased, Harris asked, “I am not going to be in trouble, am I?”

When asked about when she last saw her son alive, Harris allegedly gave several different answers, including Jan. 3, 2021, and Jan. 1, 2021. She said when she last saw her son, he was alive.

During conversations with officers, Harris said that her son was unable to move himself. Harris said she was her son’s caretaker and fed him. She told officers she last fed him three days and that she did not feed him every day. She told officers she fed her son when he was hungry, and that when he did eat, he ate a lot.

The county coroner arrived at the scene and examined the body, which had signs of decomposition.

An autopsy of the remains was conducted at the Northeast Indiana Forensic Center. In the autopsy findings, it was determined that the decedent’s body length was about five feet and his body weighed 51 pounds. The doctor who conducted the autopsy listed the cause of death as cardiac arrhythmia due to probable dehydration with elevated sodium and renal failure. Harris’s son’s death was contributed to by cerebral palsy and protein calorie malnutrition. The manner of death was listed as homicide.

A Warsaw Police detective interviewed Harris on Jan. 4, 2021. Harris said her son was blind and non-verbal. She said her son slept about 12 to 18 hours a day. In her interview, Harris said she had been discharged from the hospital before Dec. 25, 2020. Harris said while she was in the hospital, the woman she lived with took care of her son. Harris said after she came from the hospital, the woman helped her pick up her son since he weighed 100 pounds.

Harris said the last time she went to see her son was Jan. 1, 2021, and she thought he was breathing at that time. On Jan. 4, 2021, Harris said she knew her son had died but was unsure how long he had been deceased. During the investigation, the detective learned that Harris’s son had been prescribed daily medications. When asked about the last time she gave her son his medications, Harris allegedly said Jan. 1, 2021, before adding that it may have been longer than that.

She acknowledged that her son had not eaten in two or more days because she hadn’t fed him. Harris also told the detective her son had to have his adult diaper changed several times a day, but the last time his diaper was changed was on Jan. 1, 2021.

Harris said her son received almost $800 in Supplemental Security Income a month and that she received almost $1,600 a month for the both of them. Harris told the detective she spent her son’s money and would probably have to pay it back. She said she and her son had been living on his SSI money and food stamps, but that she recently qualified for her own SSI.

Harris gave the detective consent to search her phone. The detective found calls made to Dir St Express, which Harris said she calls to determine if her and her son’s social security benefits and stimulus payments have been direct deposited into her account. She said she last called the number at 1 a.m. Jan. 4, 2021, but the call log showed she called within an hour of contacting dispatch about her son’s body.

The detective asked Harris if she waited to report the death until after she confirmed that her son’s benefit check had been direct deposited and Harris said “no.” However, she then said the check would probably get taken away and apologized.

During the course of the investigation, a Warsaw Police officer spoke with the woman who lived with Harris. The woman confirmed she took care of Harris’s son while Harris was in the hospital. The woman told the officer the last time she saw the decedent was around Dec. 28 or 29, 2020, and that he was alive at that time.

Harris was booked in the Kosciusko County Jail on Jan. 28, with a $50,250 surety and cash bond.