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Pell

ELKINS – A Beverly woman charged with elder abuse for allegedly beating and strangling a woman in her care appeared at a preliminary hearing this week.

Cassie Lynn Pell, 36, appeared in Randolph County District Court on Wednesday afternoon. During the hearing, Judge Mike Dyer ruled that the case should be transferred to Randolph County District Court. Pell is charged with elder abuse and neglect, a felony.

Pell is currently being held at the Tygart Valley Regional Jail on $15,000 bail.

During Wednesday's hearing, her attorney Tyler Reseter filed a motion to modify her bail on the grounds that Pell was not a flight risk and that the cash amount was far too much for her.

Randolph County Assistant Prosecutor Leckta Poling denied the motion on the grounds that Pell was still a threat to the community, although Reseter argued that the victim was currently living out of town with Pell's sister. Dyer denied the motion to modify bail.

Deputy J. Wolfe of the Randolph County Sheriff's Office, who conducted the initial welfare check, was called to the stand by the prosecution to testify about what he saw in the house. The alleged victim was not present in court to give his testimony.

Wolfe testified that he was called on August 13 to check on the welfare of an elderly woman at a home outside of Beverly. A 911 company contacted Randolph County 911 on the woman's behalf.

When Wolfe arrived home, he said the alleged victim was in a state of despair and claimed Pell “destroyed her house” and had hit her head and chest. Wolfe found that the woman, who is in her late 70s, did indeed have a bump on her head “in harmony with the beating.”

The alleged victim also said she was “in such great pain” that she was unable to think clearly and claimed that Pell had also strangled her at some point during the week, although Wolfe saw no signs of strangulation.

Wolfe described to the court that the living room of the house appeared to be in disarray, with broken objects on the floor and “Containers and plates of food containing spoiled and moldy meat on the living room floor.”

Pell, who lived in a trailer next to the house, told Wolfe that she was the alleged victim's full-time caregiver, although the elderly woman claimed she did not need full-time care. When asked if it appeared the woman received any type of in-home care, Wolfe said: “It didn’t seem like much.”

“I think she needs someone to be with her in the home more often, as she is dependent on a walker,” Wolfe said when asked what kind of help he thought she needed. “She needs help cleaning because there was spoiled food on the floor. She probably needs to clean up the mess that was made that day. Someone to just take care of her.”

Pell, Wolfe said, was responsible for the alleged victim's finances and paid the bills with the woman's Social Security money. Pell received no financial compensation for his care. Wolfe said his investigation found no financial exploitation.

Wolfe said Pell allegedly took the elderly woman's walker, cell phone and house keys and brought them into the trailer. Pell claimed she took the walker because the alleged victim hit her with it. However, Wolfe saw no signs of injury on Pell, nor did she complain of pain.

Wolfe said Pell told him: “We get angry, we argue” And “She hit me and I grabbed her.”

Pell told Wolfe that she had taken the victim’s cell phone so that she “couldn’t break it”, But when asked to return the cell phone to the alleged victim, Pell attempted to remove the battery from the cell phone, according to Wolfe.

“I believe this was a deliberate attempt to deprive (the alleged victim) of the opportunity to communicate,” This is what Wolfe wrote in his criminal complaint. He told the court that he did not see a landline or any other telephone in the house.

Pell also reportedly refused to give the elderly lady back all of her house keys, saying: “This is how I come in to make sure she doesn’t bust her ass,” according to the criminal complaint.

The alleged victim expressed fear of Pell and told Wolfe she was afraid Pell would burn down the house or hurt her again. According to Wolfe, Pell told him: “I want her to burn in hell. I will make sure of that.”

Wolfe also told the court that he had spoken to the alleged victim's neighbors, who had expressed concern for her safety. They claimed that Pell had chased them away with her two dogs in the past when they tried to approach the house.

Wolfe testified that he had been at the residence before for trespassing and that another officer had been at the house before, although Wolfe did not know why.