WASHINGTON — Danny Norris, 56, of Pasadena, Md. has been charged with the second-degree murder of his father, as well as abuse and reckless endangerment, Anne Arundel County Police said.
On November 22, 2019, Anne Arundel County Fire responded to a medical emergency call from Norris to his father's home off Creek Road in Pasadena. Once at the home, paramedics found Danny's 91-year-old father Elmer lying in his own bodily fluids on a sunken mattress in the bedroom.
Police said Elmer had to be physically cut from the bed before he being transported to Baltimore Washington Medical Center because he was stuck in a dried layer of his own excrement. On top of flies and small insects pervading the room, authorities said a kitchen knife and plastic bottle caps were found underneath Elmer's body.
Elmer succumbed to his injuries shortly after arriving to Baltimore Washington on Nov. 22.
Authorities said medical professionals contacted police after Elmer's arrival with suspicions of elder abuse and neglect -- one nurse observed insect activity on Elmer Norris’s body when he arrived at the hospital, and utensils and bottle caps were found pressed into his skin, causing significant sores and ulcers.
After conducting numerous interviews, detectives discovered that Danny lived alone with his father at the home and was listed by the Department of Social Services as his primary caretaker.
Multiple interviews with family members showed a pattern of concern for Elmer's well-being and Danny's ability to care for him, stating that Danny often changed the locks to the home and refused to let them see and help Elmer.
Danny told detectives that his father was bed-ridden for the last month of his life, stating he was aware of the unsanitary living conditions but said there wasn't much he could do to help his father. He also told detectives that he had hired a home health care nurse to help clean and assist him, but authorities found no evidence that was true.
In March, autopsy results ruled Elmer's death as pneumonia with ulcers as a consequence of neglect. After obtaining a search warrant, Anne Arundel County Police arrested Danny Norris in his own home on March 20.
Danny Norris is charged with second-degree murder and manslaughter of Elmer, as well as three counts of vulnerable adult abuse and reckless endangerment.
Even though an arrest has been made, Anne Arundel County Police is urging anyone with information on this incident or the suspect to contact the Anne Arundel County Homicide Unit at 410-222-4731.
One can also remain anonymous by calling the Anne Arundel County Tip Line 410-222-4700 or Metro Crime Stoppers.
