Mistreatment of a dependent adult.
That’s the charge Kory McFarren, 37, is reportedly facing after his 35-year-old girlfriend, Pam Babcock, had to have a toilet seat removed from her butt by doctors after living in a bathroom for two years and not getting off the toilet for at least a month.
An impressive feat in itself, yes, but this Ness City man does not deserve to be charged for his live-in girlfriend’s stupidity.
He was not mistreating her. He took her water and food daily, and he often tried to convince her to leave the lavatory.
Maybe Babcock had a phobia about leaving, but last I checked phobias did not give people a pass for being obstinate and ignorant.
She’s in her mid-30s. She should know it is not normal nor a good idea to set up residence in a boyfriend’s bathroom, or any bathroom for that matter.
Online chatter has begged the question if she had a mental illness, and some have said a phobia would constitute such a diagnosis.
However, when I think of a mental illness, I think of things like depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, obsessive compulsive disorder, panic disorder and post traumatic stress disorder.
Now I’m not saying phobias aren’t a class of mental illness, but I am hypothesizing that making her out to be an absolute victim might be a bit much.
McFarren took care of her. She wouldn’t use her brain and leave the bathroom. How is he the bad guy?
Maybe he should have called for help sooner, but at least he apparently attempted to take care of his dependent girlfriend.
He could have just left her and not worried about her. If he had done that, then charges would be more appropriate.
That’s not what happened, though.
Charging the man that tended to his disturbed girlfriend is just plain wrong and ridiculous.
The Associated Press reported that McFarren would first appear in court sometime in April.
I wonder who is going to make the case against McFarren.
Babcock obviously didn’t see a problem in setting up her dwelling with a shower, toilet and plunger as her landscape.
Neighbors have told reporters that they never saw Babcock, but McFarren was supposedly nice and helpful.
In fact, according to reports, he often asked Babcock to come out of the restroom, but her reply was generally “maybe tomorrow.”
She didn’t want to live a normal existence in Kansas. As an adult, she chose to sit on the toilet for so long she became one with the porcelain throne and most likely ruined her legs to the point she will be wheelchair-bound for life.
She made a choice, and now Ness County Attorney Craig Crosswhite is going to make McFarren pay for his live-in girlfriend’s awful decision-making abilities and lack of a strong grasp on common sense.
Maybe there’s more to the story, but I doubt it.
Sadly, I believe someone can be so silly to enjoy sitting on the toilet. Humans have the capability to be that dumb.
Why can’t that be the case in Ness City?
Why do charges have to be brought against someone just so authorities and citizens in the area can have peace of mind and a “reason” as to why a woman had a toilet seat attached to her buttock?
