By Staff
CASSOPOLIS -- A determination on criminal charges against the mother of a 40-pound mentally disabled teenager who lived in Cass County awaits further police investigation, Prosecutor Victor A. Fitz announced last Wednesday.
Fitz said his office received police reports regarding the matter of former Niles area residents Lora Lee Benko/Baugher and her 16-year-old son Paul "Danny" Benko on Tuesday.
On Wednesday the Prosecutor's Office reviewed the reports with the Michigan State Police and requested that the state police pursue additional follow-up, Fitz said.
State police have begun that task, which Fitz expects to take at least a week.
No decisions regarding the investigation will be made until that follow-up is complete, he added.
Danny, who has cerebral palsy, was listed in serious condition this week at Cardinal Glennon Children's Hospital in St. Louis.
His condition attracted national attention after the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported he was starving, dehydrated and suffering from protruding bones, sunken eyes and bed sores when transferred to the Missouri hospital from a facility in Mount Vernon, Ill.