Home -> Law Blog Directory -> Legal News Blogs -> Legal Blog Watch

Legal News

: Legal Blog Watch

Lying About Cancer, Part II: It Turns Out It CAN Get Worse

By Bruce Carton

What's worse than lying about having cancer, which I discussed here last week? Not much, but how about lying about your healthy 12-year-old son having cancer? Prosecutors allege that Carol Lynn Schnuphase, an unemployed mother in Detroit, went so far as to drug her child to make him act lethargic and shave his head and eyebrows while accepting thousands of dollars in donations for his "treatment." Schnuphase's son was not in on the scam. Schnuphase allegedly told him that he had leukemia. The AP reports that Schnuphase was arraigned Friday on charges of fraud and child abuse. Macomb County Prosecutor Eric Smith said that "people, out of the goodness of their hearts, seeing what they think this poor child is going through have given cash, given an Xbox, given presents trying to lift his spirits. This poor child, thinking all along that he is dying of cancer. It never ends; the shock." Schnuphase's family members and relatives reported her to police. After the boy was removed from her custody, Schnuphase allegedly "told past donors her son had died and that she needed money for his funeral and burial." Uggghh.

Full post as published by Legal Blog Watch on October 06, 2010 (boomark / email).