A Lehigh Acres woman and her husband have been arrested after authorities say they attempted a suicide pact with their disabled adult son in what investigators are calling a tragic case driven by financial distress and eviction fears.
According to the Lee County Sheriff’s Office, deputies responded to a home on Almelia Street East on Monday night after receiving a 911 call about a suicide attempt. When they arrived, they found three family members suffering from severe cuts and immediately provided medical assistance.
Detectives from the Major Crimes Unit determined that Barbara Bates, 59, had orchestrated the suicide pact. According to the report, Bates told deputies that the family agreed to take their lives before receiving their final eviction notice.
Investigators say that earlier that evening, the family watched a movie together. Neil Bates reportedly drank alcohol while their son took sleeping pills provided by Barbara. She then took the remaining pills along with other drugs. Later, Barbara allegedly moved everyone to the master bedroom, where Neil used a box cutter on himself. She then used the blade on herself and her son.
Bates told deputies she waited about 40 minutes before calling 911, hoping that emergency responders would arrive too late to save them. All three were rushed to the hospital and treated for injuries that were not life-threatening.
Authorities said Barbara showed little remorse after the incident. She has since been charged with two counts of attempted premeditated murder and one count of aggravated child abuse. Her husband, Neil Bates, was also arrested and faces charges of aggravated abuse of an elderly or disabled adult and criminal attempt to take life, both felonies.
A long-time family friend, Autumn Ochsner, told local media that the couple had been struggling for months with financial and emotional stress. “She was very supportive of her brother with his medical condition, and then just slowly, I think addictions changed her,” Ochsner said.
Ochsner added that the couple’s disabled son realized during the attempt that he did not want to go through with it. “He saw that his dad had been bleeding and had been attacked, and he didn’t want to do this anymore. He really realized exactly what was happening, and that’s when she attacked him,” she explained.
Court documents reveal that Barbara confessed to the crime from her hospital bed, saying she regretted that the suicide plan failed. Neighbor Kaci Fred said Bates appeared friendly but mentioned she was facing eviction. “My father-in-law asked if she needed help with her lawn, and she said she wasn’t worried about it because she was about to be evicted,” Fred recalled.
Records show the family had been ordered to vacate the property three weeks before the incident. Deputies say eviction and homelessness fears appear to have been the breaking point for the family.