Chad Walburn (WJET/Erie County Prison).
A Pennsylvania man is behind bars after he allegedly killed his bedridden and oxygen machine-dependent mother.
Court records indicate that Chad Walburn, 40, has been charged with first-degree murder in connection with the death of his mother, Phyllis Elaine Walburn, 63, in October. Phyllis Walburn passed away at an Erie hospital on Oct. 31 following a period of health issues, as mentioned in her obituary. However, law enforcement determined her death to be a homicide.
For more legal news, check out other stories on Law&Crime: ‘She told me that she was not going to go home with me’: Man shoots wife, bartender he suspected were having an affair
Based on a probable cause arrest affidavit reported by the Erie Times-News, the Erie Police Department received a call regarding a man’s refusal to leave a residence on Oct. 23. Upon their arrival, officers discovered Chad Walburn, the uninvited individual, inside his mother’s house. The officials found Phyllis Walburn unconscious and damp in her bed. She exhibited discoloration on her neck, and it seemed that her oxygen tube had been removed from her nose. The oxygen machine was switched off and disconnected, as observed by the police.
Post-Miranda, Chad Walburn allegedly admitted to taking his mom’s oxygen tube away from her, turning it off and pulling the plug. He then poured a large amount of water on her from several containers, including a small garbage can, the affidavit reportedly said. Asked why he did such a thing, Chad Walburn allegedly said his mother needed to die. Paramedics rushed her to the hospital where she died eight days later.
The Erie County Coroner classified her death as a homicide, the Times-News reported. Walburn was charged with aggravated assault in the days after the incident. But after further investigation, the coroner determined the cause of death was respiratory failure due to the intentional withdrawal of oxygen, according to the newspaper. Walburn was arraigned on the murder charge on Friday.
He remains at the Erie County Prison without bond.
“There was a lot of moving parts to this investigation so we just wanted to make sure that everything aligned with obviously the coroner’s report and our detectives’ investigation,” Erie police Deputy Chief Rick Lorah told local ABC/Fox affiliate WJET. “At this point in time, the official coroner’s report is out listing it as a homicide and after conferring with the district attorney’s office, obviously, those charges were then filed.”
