Grovetown man dead, son faces elder neglect charges

GROVETOWN, Ga. (WJBF) – A Grovetown man is facing elder neglect charges after investigators found his 74-year-old father dead in their home.

Warning: Details of this story may be disturbing to readers.

On Wednesday, Grovetown Police Department Officers responded to a home on the 100 block of Howell Street in reference to a deceased person. Once there, Officers found 74-year-old Herschel Copeland dead on the living room couch. Investigators state he had apparently died from natural causes.

Copeland was found to be sitting in human waste and suffering from open sores on his body, which were infested with insects. The Columbia County Coroner’s Office states that Mr. Copeland had been dead for approximately 4 hours. An autopsy has been scheduled.

Elsewhere in the home, Officers located his wife, 72-year-old Song Copeland, who suffers from limited mobility. Gold Cross EMS Responders state that she was otherwise healthy. Adult Protective Services was contacted before she was removed from the home and taken to a local hotel.

The inside of the home was described by investigators as ‘uninhabitable’.

Their son, 40-year-old Peter Copeland, also lived in the home and was stated to be their primary caregiver. Peter stated that his father had been on the couch and ‘had not moved in several days’.

Peter has since been arrested and charged with Neglect to a Disabled/Elderly Adult and is now in the Columbia County Detention Center. Additional charges may be forthcoming.

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