Twin bro's who lived alongside the decomposing body of their 89 yoa mother charged with fel murder

[warrior1]

Twin brothers have been charged with felony murder after they were found living alongside the decomposing body of their mother, it was today revealed.

Edwin and Edward Berndt, 48, of Houston, Texas, had apparently been living with the corpse for three months, according to authorities.

Sybile Berndt, 89, had fallen down on January 10, but her sons did not come to her aid, according to investigators.

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[Myrina]

1. Looks & sounds like they're a few fries short of a Happy Meal ...

At least I hope that was the case, not that it was on purpose. :(

[hlthe2b]

3. I thought they might have come out of some isolated backwoods swamp

as in Deliverance... But, no... just some good ole Houston boys. (sorry, Texans, but I couldn't help but note).... Geebus. Ma, ya raised ya some real winners there...

[joeybee12]

17. Two sandwiches short of a picnic...nt

[LaurenG]

2. Having just lost my own 87 year old mother in December

this crushes me. How could they do that, just let her die on the floor? :cry:

[hlthe2b]

4. I think Myrina is right.. They don't strike me as "altogether there".

[Gin]

7. now they transition from living with parents... to another kind of parent..

prison or mental hospital...sickening story.

[Brickbat]

5. I think there was a lot of pain in this family, and while what they did was terrible, I get the

feeling that they might not have been able to make a better decision. I hope everyone involved gets the help they clearly need.

[Jackpine Radical]

21. Yeah.

48 year-old twins that lived at home with mom. & can imagine any number of scenarios here, all tragic.

[Poll_Blind]

6. There are areas in this great big country of ours, areas secreted away and...

...often locked up in a fashion. And beyond those locks, into the little spaces or even worlds that people, sometimes very sick and troubled people, make for themselves can be alien and frightful.

Though events may take place in an average-looking house in an average-looking neighborhood, they are as different from what we consider to be our "society" as an open field is to the bottom of the deepest sea.

Very troubling on many levels.

PB

[Thunderstruck]

8. You got the exact same vibe from this story as I did. It took you to the same

dark places my mind went to - those shadowy, secretive places where reality and being are viewed and experienced and lived quite differently than what we consider "normal".

*shudder*

[luvspeas]

10. And often that sick dark place is called MONEY!...n/t

[Tunkamerica]

9. did you write this story or did you forget the link?

[luvspeas]

12. It's not so hard to find that you have to be rude...

http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/headline/metro/7518090.html

[Tunkamerica]

15. how was that rude?

[BobbyBoring]

11. Unreal!

Did they just leave her on the floor for 3 months?

Looks like watching bowling takes a lot out of you

[Cleita]

13. It seems at 89 the mother would have been

eligible for Medicare. They could have gotten her medical care. Maybe they didn't know. It seems like there was definitely something missing there.

[Poll_Blind]

14. Obviously, just like the rest of us I'm guessing. But IMO, the sons...

...probably suffer from one or more mental disorders or deficiencies. Their appearance, alone, their inability to formulate a reasonable response that a single person should be able to, etc. Those all lead me to believe that they're "not all there".

There is also the matter of the mother's death in the first place. She could have fallen on her own, but there's also the possibility that she might have had some help taking the tumble and that, especially combined with potential less-than-stellar higher functioning of her twins, could easily have worked itself into such a diseased situation.

PB

[TwilightGardener]

16. Just plain weird.

[Voice for Peace]

18. they look like really sad boys.

maybe Momma was like Momma in "throw Momma from the train"

[JuniperLea]

19. They do look very sad...

I wonder if we will hear the rest of the story... there must be more.

[babydollhead]

20. "When Mommy dies we never have to bathe again!" n/t

[EC]

22. $700,000. in her acct.?

They couldn't afford to have her taken care of? I don't believe these guys wanted to help their mother. Yes, they seem "slow" but I'm getting the vibe that they may have even caused her "fall".

[RobinA]

23. Where Does It Say

that they knew about the money?

[EC]

24. Why wouldn't they?

I'm not saying they knew about the money anyway...I'm thinking they more or less got fed-up with caring for her or maybe she was the type that complained constantly...who knows, I just get the feeling that they knew what was happening there...