Authorities in New Orleans have uncovered a deeply disturbing case involving a woman who had been living for nine months with the mummified remains of her son inside a home overrun by filth, chickens, and rats. The body of 31-year-old Charles Hainsworth was found decomposing inside the Lakeview home he shared with his mother, Barbara Hainsworth.
The discovery was made after multiple complaints from neighbours about the overwhelming stench and unsanitary conditions around the property. When officers from the New Orleans Police Department arrived at the residence, they found Barbara Hainsworth living amid garbage, vermin, and poultry. The house was described as being “filled with garbage, chickens, roosters, rats,” according to officials.
Upon questioning, Hainsworth told police: “That’s my son. He died about nine months ago.” Orleans Parish Coroner Dwight McKenna later confirmed the identity of the deceased as Charles Hainsworth. “The body had been there for months – estimating about nine months,” McKenna told local outlet Nola.com. “The odour is pretty bad. The odour… alerted the neighbours.”
Public records show that neighbours had complained to the city numerous times over the condition of the property, which had become a hub for vermin. A neighbour, who asked to remain anonymous, said: “When she walked around the neighbourhood, she pushed this little baby stroller. And then she would come back with the baby stroller filled with junk and trash. It honestly looked like she would go through people’s alleyways and dig in their garbage cans.”
Barbara Hainsworth, described by investigators as “mentally disabled,” was previously a licensed physician, but had her medical licence revoked about a decade ago, according to WDSU News.
The Department of Code Enforcement (DCE) was alerted to the property by the New Orleans Health Department on May 7. In a statement obtained by WDSU, the agency said: “A Code Enforcement investigator was immediately dispatched to the property. DCE’s investigation revealed horrific conditions, including the remains of a mummified male body and evidence of extreme hoarding conditions, along with mounds of trash in and around the property.”
The agency confirmed the property was condemned as a health hazard. “DCE informed its demolition contractor to be on standby to perform an assessment to clean-up and remove the trash and seal the hole in the bathroom floor,” the statement continued. “The property was also scheduled to be boarded by the New Orleans Police Department.”
The cause of Charles Hainsworth’s death is still under investigation, and authorities have not yet confirmed whether criminal charges will be filed.
