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Joseph Polizzi (New York State Police).
Authorities in New York have charged a man accused of neglecting his elderly mother, who succumbed to sepsis and bedsores in an unheated shed lacking basic amenities, while he resided just steps away.
Joseph Polizzi, aged 64, faces allegations of criminally negligent homicide and putting the welfare of a vulnerable elderly person at risk in connection to the death of 89-year-old Nancy Polizzi. This development was revealed by the New York State Police in a formal announcement.
Polizzi has since been detained at the Schoharie County Correctional Facility.
On February 23, 2025, police responded to a call about an unattended death at a property in Carlisle, New York. Upon arrival, officers discovered Nancy Polizzi’s lifeless body in a shed located on the premises.
As the investigation unfolded, authorities uncovered that she had been residing in the shed since August 2024, which was without heating or running water, compounding her vulnerable condition.
An autopsy was conducted on Nancy Polizzi’s body, and the doctor ruled that she died from “sepsis as a result of untreated gangrenous decubitus ulceration (bedsores).” The manner of death was ruled a homicide.
The investigation continued, with troopers learning Joseph Polizzi was the victim’s son “and primary caretaker as Nancy was unable to walk, feed herself, or speak in the weeks leading up to her death.” He “allegedly did not provide Nancy adequate medical care or seek needed medical treatment for her, which reportedly resulted in her death.”
On Thursday, Joseph Polizzi was arrested at his home and booked into jail. His bail was set at $5,000 cash, $10,000 bond or $50,000 partially secured bond.
Carlisle is a town in upstate New York about 40 miles west of Albany. Data from AccuWeather show temperatures reached lows of 4 degrees Fahrenheit in the town in February 2025.