[file under 'beware' and prayers for child.]
http://www.southbendtribune.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070213/News01/70213047/0/NEWS
Article published Feb 13, 2007
Mother dies, leaving 5-year-old daughter with her body for days
FRUITLAND TOWNSHIP, Mich. (AP) -- A 5-year-old girl fended for herself for days while she was left home alone with the body of her mother, who was found dead on her couch after apparently succumbing to bacterial meningitis, authorities said.
The body of Tina Tietz, 39, was discovered Sunday afternoon after a concerned longtime friend called 911.
Police had to force their way into her rural home in Muskegon County's Fruitland Township, about 45 miles northwest of Grand Rapids. There they also found the woman's daughter, Marissa, who had rummaged the house for food for an unknown number of days, and the family dog, which had been tied up inside.
Police found the cupboards open, rice and cereal spilled all over and the bathroom sink overflowing.
Mother and child lived alone at the address. Tietz's teenage daughter stays with the woman's ex-husband, police said.
Marissa was examined at a hospital and now is in the care of her maternal grandparents, who live in Oceana County, Muskegon County Undersheriff Dean Roesler told The Muskegon Chronicle for a story published Tuesday. The Tietz's mixed-breed dog was taken to a nearby animal-rescue organization.
A preliminary autopsy finding indicates that Tietz likely died of bacterial meningitis, although laboratory tests will be conducted to confirm the cause of death, Roesler said.
Bacterial meningitis is a serious infection of the fluid in the spinal cord and the fluid that surrounds the brain, and can cause brain damage and death. Symptoms include fever, headache and a stiff neck.
Michelle Schnotala, 39, of Montague, drove to Tietz's home on Sunday to check on her friend. They last spoke to each other on Feb. 3, at which time Tietz complained of a headache and ear pain, Schnotala said.
When messages left on Tietz's cell phone during the ensuing week went unanswered, Schnotala became concerned and drove to her house, and found ''everything was all locked up. I heard the dog barking and Marissa crying.''
Schnotala peeked through a front door slot, saw her friend on the couch and called for help. She could not persuade Marissa to unlock the door.
''She just kept saying 'Mama's sleeping, Mama's sleeping,''' Schnotala said.
In March 2000, authorities in Kent County discovered that a 7-year-old boy dressed himself and got his own meals for up to three weeks while his 29-year-old mother lay dead on the floor of their Grand Rapids-area apartment.
Medical officials never determined the cause of her death but relatives said the woman had diabetes.
Heart wrenching.