ALLENTOWN, Pa. -- An Allentown man was charged Friday in what local police described as the worst case of elder abuse they had ever seen.

The man's 76-year-old mother was found inside her Allentown home last February in deplorable conditions.

Police said she was dehydrated, starving, and sitting in a soiled chair. She later died at the hospital.

Yesterday, police charged her 55-year-old son, David Dettra, with third-degree murder.

They said he failed to provide his mother, with food, water and medical care.