By Gari Voss
The sentencing for Cory Nethery (26) on Friday, June 16, 2023 brought a 60 to 100 year prison term for the death of his grandfather, William Fitzhugh. This culminated an investigation that went in-depth after William (82) passed because of adult abuse by Nethery and Christopher Fitzhugh, another of William’s grandsons.
William’s son discovered his father on Oct. 18, 2021 curled up on his bed and surrounded with filth and squalor throughout the house, drug paraphernalia and feces in the toilet and numerous buckets.
On Nov. 15, 2021, Nethery, then 24, and his cousin Christopher Fitzhugh, then 27, were charged with vulnerable adult abuse and embezzlement of their grandfather who lived in Pullman, MI.
FOX 17 conducted a lengthy investigation when William’s son Steven found his father on Oct. 18, 2021, in a serious state of malnutrition. In addition, William had a broken hip, femur, multiple ribs, and nose plus a collapsed lung. William died on Dec. 21, 2021.
The final autopsy from the Medical Examiner on Feb. 23, 2022, described William’s death as a complication of multiple injuries, malnourishment and neglect.
Allegan County Prosecuting Attorney Myrene Koch changed charges against the grandsons to felony murder, first-degree vulnerable adult abuse, second-degree vulnerable adult abuse and embezzlement between $1,000 and $20,000 by a person of trust with a vulnerable adult.
The irony of the situation was that the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services MDHHS) Department of Adult Protective Services (APS) had given temporary guardianship of William to his children. At that time, William was not determined to be a “vulnerable adult”.
Reports made to APS on Jan. 2017, Mar. 2018, Nov. 2018 and May 2021 had been closed because William and his wife Eula refused services and stated that everything was “fine”. The couple was determined to be competent. MDHHS could do no more at that time.
Though William’s children felt that the system had failed their father, there was a combination of people expected to care for the couple. The children, as guardians, were expected to monitor their parents’ care. And APS, that received numerous complaints regarding the couple, was expected to assist.
William often described his grandsons as “good boys”. The boys had been adopted by their grandparents and lived with them most of their lives. Problems only arose when the boys became addicted to drugs, especially methamphetamine, that turned them abusive. But William and Eula continually refused to admit the abuse when the boys would beat him if he did not give them money.
The May 11, 2021 referral to APS had been closed on June 9, 2021. June 14th, Christopher was arrested for assaulting an officer of the law. On June 16th, APS received another referral for the elderly couple, but the case was closed with no in-person visit.
Referrals on Oct. 17 and Oct. 22, 2021 also went uninvestigated because even when admitted to the hospital on Oct. 18th, William refused to say that things were less than “fine”.
By the Oct. 18th trip to the hospital with his children, William was found to have renal cancer that was beyond treatment. Because of his fragile condition, the children decided to place him in hospice.
On Oct. 29th, William finally admitted that the boys had been beating him and taking his money. This led to the Nov. 15, 2021 charges made against the grandsons for vulnerable adult abuse and embezzlement until William’s death on Dec. 12, 2021.
On April 14, 2023, Cory Nethery pleaded no contest to second-degree murder and first-degree adult abuse leading to the death of his grandfather. The severity of the crimes brought the 60 to 100 year sentencing on June 16, 2023.
Christopher’s case is still working its way through the court system. Because he was not cooperating, his arraignment and sentencing were rescheduled.