Woman lives with 3 rotting siblings

[Unamused Cat]

House of corpses

Police made a startling discovery on a peaceful, well-kept block in Evanston yesterday afternoon. A 90-year-old woman was found living in a house on Judson Avenue with her brother, Frank Bernstorff, and two sisters, Elaine Bernstorff and Anita Bernstorff -- all three of which were deceased. Elaine is said to have not been seen alive since at least the early 1980s. Frank was last seen in 2003, and Anita in May of this year.

Authorities have reported that there is no evidence of foul play, and that the Bernstorffs probably died of natural causes. One of the bodies -- presumably Anita -- was in a bad state of composition, while the other two bodies were skeletons. One neighbor stated she just recently saw the remaining sibling, who has not been identified, handing out candy on Halloween, while another neighbor told the Sun-Times that "perhaps the woman didn’t know what to do when her siblings died."

A plausible theory if the three had died at the same time, which obviously they did not. Multiple people were living in the house at some point with at least one dead body -- who knows why none of them took any steps to have them removed.

http://chicagoist.com/2008/11/08/eva...ing_with_3.php

I wonder if she was collecting their SS checks.

[brokenandtwisted]

Maybe she is mentally ill? Like "A Rose for Emily" ill?

[Silvahalo]

A real house of horror. Kiddos have know idea that the treat was the safer option than tricking at old lady Bernstorff...creepy and sad.

[MichaelJCheaney]

House of corpses



http://chicagoist.com/2008/11/08/eva...ing_with_3.php

I wonder if she was collecting their SS checks.

Maybe she didn't know what to do when they died? Who was the inbred redneck hillbilly that actually said THAT out loud. That has got to be the stupidest quote I've read all day. But then again it is still early.

[tankgirl]

This is just wierd. I grew up not far from there. Both of my parents grew up in evanston. There are nothing but big, beautiful, huge, old houses. Taxes are astronomical. Definatly not typical of that area. ? Funerals for any of them? Or maybe was she collecting their checks?

[Dakota Valkyrie]

Must have been reclisive if no one really missed them except in passing...

[Lizard]

In recent months, Bernstorff had become increasingly frail and, at the urging of some of her neighbors, had sought help from an advocate for the elderly in Evanston. It was that relationship that led police to discover the bodies Friday, investigators said.

Al Redmond, 44, a local contractor, had made several outside repairs to the Bernstorff home during the last five years, and he also kept his vintage Buick in its garage, Redmond said.

Redmond said Margaret Bernstorff rarely let him or his workers inside. If Redmond asked to use the bathroom, she'd say there was something wrong with the toilet, he said.

But one occasion, Redmond had to open the attic windows because he'd just painted the exterior frames and didn't want them to get stuck.

The inside of the home was lined with stacks of old newspapers -- some as tall as him, he said. Redmond said he sometimes had to turn sideways to get by the newspapers.

And inside the attic, "it was like it hadn't been touched in 40 years," Redmond said.

Five years ago, when neighbors noticed elderly Frank Bernstorff had quit puttering around his Evanston garden, they asked one of his live-in sisters if anything was wrong.

No, Margaret Bernstorff said, there was nothing to be concerned about -- he'd gone to live with out-of-state relatives.

Last spring, when sibling Anita Bernstorff stopped coming out onto the porch, neighbors repeated the question.

Anita had become afraid to venture outside, Margaret Bernstorff said.

http://www.suntimes.com/news/1267657...110708.article

[MISSanthropic]

This is fucking weird.

[Sister Iroz]

Sounds like they were very reclusive introverts and only had each other. I especially don't understand why they didn't do anything about the sister who died in the 80's. Very creepy! Maybe make a good movie, House of Corpses.

[Peeperann]

They were all pretty old. Maybe Alzhiemers? Very sad in my opinion

[blue_zombie]

This is so early V.C. Andrews dead bodies and recluses living behind closed doors away from the prying eyes of society. Not to mention the whole incest thing (3 sisters, 1 brother, you do the math!). This is If There Be Thorns meets M. Night Shyamalan!!!

Gross. You would think it had started to smell funky!

[Gidget]

They were all pretty old. Maybe Alzhiemers? Very sad in my opinion

If she were far enough along with Alzheimer's to be OK with a corpse in the house when the first one died (they said that person hadn't been seen since the 80s), it's not likely that she has not progressed to a vegetative state by now.

Not saying she doesn't have it now, just saying it's not likely that she had the disease back in the 80s if she's still alive and coherent enough to talk to her neighbors.

[Zibarro]

OK -
Setting aside the "Why'd she do this" and the "How could she live like that" ... there is a question that also begs asking -

What will they do with her? Even If this was a criminal act of some sort - she is 90 years old! Do you jail her? Institutionalize her? Just how far do you press the issue if there is no real "punishment" if any crime was committed?

Bizarre.

[moonlilly1981]

some people just cant let go when they grow older.

[Ruby]

Nah, you don't jail her. There's no evidence of foul play. What strikes me is that they were all on board with this. This wasn't one wacky woman. The first sib died in the 80s. The next one died in 2003. Then one in May. So all three of the sibs were living in the house with the first corpse for something like 15-20 years. Then 2 of them were living with corpse #2 for the last 5 years. Odd family, no??

[orangeduckfuzz]

CHICAGO (Reuters) - An elderly woman has been living with two skeletons and a badly decomposed body of her siblings in a suburb of Chicago, one of whom may have died at least 20 years ago, authorities said on Saturday.

The remains were found covered by sheets in various parts of the house in Evanston on Friday but no foul play was suspected.

Authorities said one of the siblings was last seen alive in the 1980s, the second in 2003 and the third in May.

The woman living in the house, described as "upwards of 90 years of age," was cooperating in the investigation and was taken to a facility for care.

Authorities, who did not release the names of the deceased, said a care worker had alerted them to the situation. Autopsies were due to be performed on Saturday.
http://www.reuters.com/article/oddly...4A971Q20081110

[Morticia]

That is really sad. Imagine how lonely she must have lived. Then again, if she was able to get food, she was able to notify someone about the dead sibling no? Keeping a body for twenty years?? maybe she is a really old serial killer.

[Maggie Mae]

This is right down the street from my grandmother's new retirement community. Jeez. I'm not so sure about the neighborhood anymore. :P

[crickett]

Very strange but probably not the only person living that way. But she was with it enough to make up stories as to why the neighbors no longer saw her siblings outside. No doubt she's just quite mentally ill and her siblings were as we.
hmmmmm...I wonder about the home values now....