‘Like a skeleton in a chair’: Woman finds uncle dead for days at independent living facility

MARICOPA COUNTY, Ariz. (KPHO/Gray News) — An Arizona woman says she recently made a grim discovery at an independent living facility.

According to Angela Boorn, she went to visit her uncle at LifeStream at Sun City last Thursday but found him unresponsive, sitting in his chair.

Maricopa County Sheriff’s deputies said he was likely dead for three to four days.

Boorn said she is still in shock and feels guilty for trusting the care facility’s staff.

She said her uncle, Gerald McClellan, was like a second father to her, and she couldn’t believe she was the one to find him, days after he died.

“It looked like a skeleton in a chair. The face, the eyes were hollowed out,” Boorn said.

Boorn said her 75-year-old uncle had moved into a studio apartment inside the independent living facility in January after his wife died.

“I promised my aunt that I would take care of him when she passed away,” Boorn said.

According to Boorn, she felt comfortable with his new setup and the nearly $1,700 rent because she said a safety system was in place.

Boorn was told all residents had to push a button every morning to signal to staff they were OK.

“Every day by 10 a.m., or a staffing member was supposed to reach out to him or come check on him,” Boorn said.

But, apparently, that didn’t happen when it mattered most.

“I just remember running out of the room and running to the front desk and just asking her when the last time they checked on him,” Boorn said.

According to Boorn, LifeStream’s executive director informed her that no one had seen him since the weekend before.

“He didn’t push the button; they tried to call him, didn’t get a hold of him, and they still did not go check on him,” Boorn said. “It wasn’t one day, it wasn’t two days, it wasn’t three days, it was four.”

Maricopa County Sheriff’s deputies confirmed McClellan was dead for several days before 911 was called.

“Nobody should have to see that. It didn’t even look like a person because he had been there for so long,” Boorn said.

Now, she’s hoping to turn her anger into action to prevent another family from having a similar experience.

“People who do have family in there, check on your family member because clearly they’re not doing it,” Boorn said.

The assisted living facility said it was devastated over losing a resident.

“LifeStream at Sun City is deeply saddened by the passing of one of our residents. Our heartfelt condolences and prayers go out to their family and loved ones during this difficult time,” the team shared in a statement. “We extend our sincere gratitude to emergency responders for their compassion, professionalism, and support.”

Boorn believes more needs to be done to improve protocols so this never happens again.

A spokesperson for the independent living facility said they are not releasing any further information regarding the situation out of respect for the family’s privacy.