Man Convicted of Abuse in Death of Malnourished, Bedridden Mother

A Thousand Oaks man has been convicted of elder abuse in a case in which he and his sister were accused of neglecting their bedridden mother, whom paramedics found malnourished with bug-infested and feces-smeared sores. She died several days later, in December, 1988.

Thomas McKelvey, 30, is scheduled to be sentenced March 30. He was found guilty of the rarely used charge--which was invoked for the first time in Ventura County--after a two-day, nonjury trial before Ventura Superior Court Judge Robert J. Soares.

His sister, Theresa McKelvey, 28, pleaded guilty to the same charge last August. She was sentenced in December to two months in Ventura County Jail, as well as five years probation and 500 hours of community service. She testified against her brother this week, saying he offered her no help in the care of their mother, Dolores McKelvey, 58, who suffered from multiple sclerosis.

Both siblings were originally charged with manslaughter.

Deputy Dist. Atty. Peter D. Kossoris said Friday he expected McKelvey to receive a similar, possibly lesser, sentence than his sister because he was less culpable.

Kossoris said McKelvey had opposed his mother’s return from a nursing home and agreed only to cook and clean the house for her and his 88-year-old grandmother, while his sister was supposed to take care of their mother’s hygiene.

McKelvey said he discovered his mother’s condition only after his sister left the house for a few days at Thanksgiving, 1988. He telephoned for an ambulance, and his mother died several days later at Los Robles Regional Medical Center.