Paramedics find care-dependent man covered with cat litter; wife arrested

CARBONDALE TOWNSHIP, Pa. (WBRE) -- Pennsylvania State Police say a 53-year-old man dependent on his wife was covered in cat litter instead of being properly cared for.

Police said David Maijala was brought to the Geisinger CMC Hospital with a broken bones and covered in his own feces, urine and cat litter in September. He also had a large, rotting sore on his back that a nurse described as so deep it almost left his spine visible. He had reportedly been struck by an ATV in August.

Officials said he had recently fallen onto the floor where he remained until paramedics took him from the home. Paramedics responded to a Carbondale Township home for a patient with hip pain and found human waste and garbage inside the home, and the victim was found on the floor covered in cat litter and a sheet.

Catherine Maijala told paramedics that she put the cat litter around him because he was defecating on himself, had become impossible to care for and was “ruining the house.” Troopers say the victim had previously suffered a stroke and was dependent on his wife for care.

Catherine Maijala is facing several charges including felony neglect of a care-dependent person.