Michigan man faces up to 100 years in jail for torturing and starving autistic brother to death
Michigan man Paul Ferguson sentenced to 30 to 100 years in jail for abeting mother in torturing and starving his autistic brother.
21-year-old Paul Ferguson from Michigan confessed to having helped his mother, Shanda Vander Ark (44), in brutally torturing and starving his autistic brother to death. While in court, he pleaded for “mercy and fairness”. His 15-year-old brother Timothy reportedly died from malnourishment and hypothermia in 2022.
Ferguson urged his case through his tears in court two days ago. He ironically asked the judge for some “compassion” despite his brutal contribution in torturing the teenager to death, being undoubtedly devoid of any feeling of concern for his brother. In the aftermath, while the 21-year-old man came forward to voice his regrets, all his words rang hollow because the horrors of the mother-son duo had already impacted the young boy in 2022. Ferguson addressed the court, “If I could do it all again, do it right, I would. I feel I will pay for my choices and yet never feel better, because he's still gone.” (The Mirror US)
Grand Rapids Press reported that, regardless of his claims to the court, the Judge looked past the idea of him having been ‘manipulated’ by the killer-mother into committing the nightmarish act. “The court believes Mr Ferguson is one step away from becoming a psychopath like his mother,” said the Judge despite Ferguson's feeble reference to himself as a victim of “something close to Stockholm Syndrome”.
Charges against Paul Ferguson and Shanda Vander Ark:
He's been convicted of first-degree child abuse against his brother Timothy. On the flip side, the boys' mother, Shanda Vander Ark, has been sentenced to life in prison without any chance of parole.
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Judge Matthew Kacel steered clear of the sentencing guidelines, suggesting a 9-15 year sentence. Instead of following the pre-established protocol, he issued Ferguson a sentence of a minimum of 30 years and a maximum of 100 years. To which Muskegon County Chief Trial Prosecutor Matt Roberts further recommended mental health treatment for the 21-year-old while he served his time in jail since he could be a risk to the public.
A more recent report by The Mirror stated that both convicted parties retched during the trial on being shown photos of the young boy who tragically passed away in July 2022 after suffering through horrific sadistic mistreatment.
(Trigger Warning for disturbing content)
More on what the Michigan man and his mother did to the 15-year-old autistic boy
The afflicted boy weighed just 69 pounds when he died in 2022. Timothy was speech and motor impaired. Before he passed away, he was subjected to heinous mistreatments like long ice baths. The one before his death spanned nine hours.
He wasn't allowed access to the fridge, which was locked up by the aforementioned mother-son duo. As a result, Timothy was only allowed to heat bread in hot sauce. His mother also reportedly installed motion sensors, alarms, and cameras around the cramped closet he used to sleep in.
A distressing text shared between the pair revealed how the mother had considered putting hot sauce on the vulnerable kid's genitals as a form of punishment. "I wonder how it would feel to have that hot sauce on your private parts. I'm not saying touch him there, not at all, but dripping a little bit there, is that horrible," stated the twisted mother's question.
