Background: Sean McCormack appears in New Haven County (Conn.) court (WTIC/YouTube). Inset: Donna Caponera (Porto Funeral Homes).
A man in Connecticut tasked with caring for his Alzheimer”s-affected sister got burned out from his duties and killed her in a drunken frenzy, authorities say.
Sean McCormack, 56, is charged with murder in the death of 69-year-old Donna Caponera, according to court records reviewed by Law&Crime. He is being held on $2 million bond.
On May 16, McCormack and Caponera were at a home on Edgemere Road in East Haven, Connecticut, a town in the southern part of the state on the Atlantic Coast. Authorities say McCormack was Caponera’s in-home caregiver and held power of attorney due to her Alzheimer’s.
Dispatchers in the area received a call that evening, apparently from McCormack, regional NBC affiliate WVIT reported. The caller spoke no words before hanging up, and police responded to the area of the call.
Officers reportedly arrived to find an intoxicated McCormack, who showed them to the living room where Caponera lay unresponsive on the floor. The defendant allegedly sat bleeding from the inside of his arm next to an open bottle of vodka, discarded cigarettes, and a kitchen knife.
“She f—ing passed away,” McCormack told police, according to an arrest warrant cited by local ABC affiliate WTNH. Caponera was lying in a pool of blood and appeared to have a phone charging cord wrapped around her neck.
Caponera was pronounced dead, and McCormack was taken into police custody. He had reportedly soiled his pants and shown signs of self-harm.
When McCormack was taken to a hospital, he allegedly made several incriminating statements, such as “I just killed…” and “Now she’s f—ing laying here dead,” as well as “I can’t believe what I just did.”
According to the court documents, investigators spoke with other family members and learned that the defendant was a recovering alcoholic. He was a good caregiver to his sister, they said, but Caponera had been growing increasingly angry in the late stages of her Alzheimer’s disease and was hitting her brother.
McCormack was getting burned out, not sleeping enough, and attending Alcoholics Anonymous meetings online, authorities added.
There were notes in the East Haven house, the court documents stated. On one of them, McCormack had allegedly tried to write, “This is what Alzheimer’s will do to you.”
The defendant is expected to return to court on June 3.
Caponera is remembered in her obituary as having been the “beloved owner and heart” behind a local day care before her retirement.
“Through her kindness, patience, and loving spirit, she created a safe and joyful place where countless children were nurtured, encouraged, and loved as if they were her own,” the obituary adds. “She will be deeply missed and forever remembered for her generous heart, warm smile, and unwavering devotion to others.”
