Saturday, December 14, 2019

Cold case update: Lawyer claims Joplin woman didn't abandon husband's corpse- he was in a freezer by her bed

Though Judge Joseph Hensley did not dismiss a felony abandonment of a corpse charge against Barbara Watters, 67, Joplin, he released her from house arrest Friday while she awaits trial.

Watters' attorney, John Cobb Young, argued his client did not abandon the corpse of her husband Paul N. Barton, who died December 31, 2018, since she kept his body in a working freezer only a few feet from her bed, keeping him at subzero temperatures and had no intention of getting rid of him.








The law says abandonment of a corpse is when "a person abandons, disposes, deserts or leaves a corpse without property reporting the location of the body to proper law enforcement officials in that county."

A pre-trial conference is scheduled for 1:30 p.m. Wednesday, January 8.




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5 comments:

  1. Anonymous6:18 AM

    Do we not have better things to take to trial than this? This woman truly believed the government was going to harvest the organs of her husband. She was protecting him. Yes, it is bizarre. I hope it is dismissed.

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  2. Anonymous9:17 AM

    Agreed. He died of natural causes, was not murdered. Let it go. Focus on searching for all the missing young girls in the Joplin area.

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  3. onetjefferson10:22 AM

    What I want to know was if she was drawing his Social Security or pension checks illegally after death. That would be a reason to keep him from being reported deceased. That would be a crime

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  4. Hyacinth12:41 PM

    This case is one of those that requires a different approach, one that is being touted by New Age criminal justice professionals. This should not go to trial, rather this woman should be getting mental health intervention. Unless she is prone to this kind of behavior and the court believes that she will do this again, then we need to let this go without expensive legal interference. This is costing her and the taxpayer too much money.

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  5. Anonymous10:49 AM

    yeah, no one thinks this is a big deal and everyone wants to let it go.

    however, I am perfectly fine with this being a big deal and maybe even going to trial. because when this type of thing becomes "okay" or "acceptable" or "no big deal" and when its MY neighbors that are keeping their dead kin in freezers next to MY home, and when its MY kids hanging out with THEIR kids, and when its MY barbecue they attend and MY pool they're swimming in and MY community in which they're secretly stewing in all their bubbling craziness - then hell yes it becomes a big deal. tell me you don't feel the same, tell me more about how okay this is and why we should just leave the poor crazy dumbass alone. good god you guys.

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