over nothing

Quote :

"A WOMAN who was sectioned for 70 years after being wrongly accused of stealing two shillings and sixpence has been reunited with her family. Jean Gambell, 85, was only 15 when she was accused of taking the money, worth about 13p, and sectioned in 1937. The money was eventually found, but a letter recently sent to one of her brothers sparked a terrible realisation - the sister they thought was dead was still alive and had been lost in a maze of care institutions for decades. David Gambell, 63, from Wirral, Cheshire, said: "Last month, I received a questionnaire from a care home in Macclesfield asking if we happy with it. It was addressed to my mother, and I was just about to throw it in the bin as junk when I saw a name pencilled in the corner - Jean Gambell. I rang them and they said straight away that our sister was there." His brother Alan, 66, said: "We were not even born in 1937 when Jean was put away." After being accused of stealing the money from the doctor's surgery where she worked as a cleaner, Jean was taken to Cranage Hall in Crewe. She was later relocated and the Gambells moved house. With the death of their mother 25 years ago, the family's link to their sister was lost. The brothers' inquiries confirmed that after Jean's original detention at Cranage Hall, her records had been lost, but she had gone to various care homes. Alan said: "We now know that many of the things she was saying to the staff had been dismissed as figments of her imagination." Last month, the brothers made their first visit to see Jean at the care home, and were warned by staff that she was deaf and may not remember them. David said: "We were very nervous. We had a bunch of flowers and wrote on a piece of card 'Hello Jean, we're your brothers'. They brought her in and she took one look at us, and said, 'Hello Alan, hello David', and put her arms around us." Shortly after the meeting Jean suffered a stroke, which the family believe may be connected to the shock of their reunion, but she is making good progress. Cheshire County Council said yesterday it was investigating the matter."

http://news.scotsman.com/uk.cfm?id=1549982007&bad=1004768

...how sad

10/3/2007 7:52:13 AM

that fucking sucks

10/3/2007 7:54:51 AM

there has to be more to it than that

not even iran imprisons underage girls for stealing $20.00

bitch was probably a schizo or some shit

10/3/2007 8:16:33 AM

in this case, i honestly hope so

10/3/2007 8:20:21 AM

Quote :

"They brought her in and she took one look at us, and said, 'Hello Alan, hello David', and put her arms around us.""

Quote :

"His brother Alan, 66, said: "We were not even born in 1937 when Jean was put away." "

10/3/2007 8:23:55 AM

yeah, i noticed that too--i doesn't say when they lost touch, i would assume they had some contact with her in their childhood

10/3/2007 8:26:06 AM

Quote :

"With the death of their mother 25 years ago, the family's link to their sister was lost."

they obviously knew of each other through their mother

10/3/2007 8:55:03 AM

it's not clear though, what that statement actually means

10/3/2007 9:00:17 AM

So why was she institutionalized for stealing money? I would think that she would just be put in jail for a few days at most.

[Edited on October 3, 2007 at 10:13 AM. Reason : ]

10/3/2007 10:12:52 AM

Raleigh, NC: Man held without trial for 14 years at total cost of $2.3 million(~$700/day).
http://www.newsobserver.com/news/story/720272.html

He probably did it, but that doesn't make the headline any less disturbing.

10/3/2007 12:07:32 PM

why does it cost $700 a day for all patients in Dorthea Dix? Are the getting constant spa treatments and filet mingnons?

10/3/2007 12:19:14 PM

probably for the doctors, but that is still outragous

10/3/2007 12:38:12 PM

Stories like this reinforce my belief that heaven and hell exist.

This is very sad and frustrating.

She has earned a straight ticket to heaven, and many people to hell.

10/3/2007 12:51:51 PM

10/3/2007 1:24:31 PM