Parents of emaciated woman found 'melted' into couch plead no contest to manslaughter

EAST FELICIANA PARISH, La. (TCD) -- A married couple pleaded no contest to manslaughter this week two years after their 36-year-old daughter was found "melted" into their couch, deceased, and covered in feces.

WBRZ-TV reports Sheila and Clay Fletcher entered the plea Monday, Feb. 5, in connection with their daughter Lacey Fletcher’s death. They were originally charged with second-degree murder, but the charges were dismissed and later reinstated.

Lacey Fletcher died Jan. 3, 2022, and reportedly weighed only 96 pounds. According to WBRZ, East Feliciana Parish Coroner Dr. Ewell Bickham said Lacey Fletcher had been "melted" into a couch at Sheila and Clay Fletcher’s house because she most likely had not moved for years. She reportedly had feces and bugs all over her body. Bickham described the couch as a "latrine."

Bickham told WAFB-TV that Lacey Fletcher suffered from "at least a decade of medical neglect," calling it the "worst form of medical neglect I’ve ever seen." He ruled her death a homicide and said starvation played a major role.

WBRZ reports Lacey Fletcher lived with autism and was nonverbal. She had not seen a doctor in about 20 years.

Sheila and Clay Fletcher’s attorney told WBRZ, "They loved her to death, and that is the true statement of what the Fletchers are. The things that happened to Lacey are horrible in the way it worked out, but they cared for her daily."

Bickham said, "What happened to Lacey should never happen again."

They will be sentenced in March, and prosecutors are reportedly advocating for a 40-year sentence.

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