Man Found Dead at Sun City Independent Living

Gerald McClellan, 75, was found dead in his chair Oct. 16 at LifeStream at Sun City, an independent living facility in Phoenix’s West Valley; Maricopa County Sheriff’s deputies say he was likely deceased for three to four days before being discovered. His niece, Angela Boorn, who moved him into the studio apartment in January after his wife’s death and paid about $1,700 a month, said she believed the facility provided daily safety checks. The facility requires residents to press a button each morning by 10 a.m.; staffers say they called when McClellan did not press it but did not perform an in-person welfare check for several days, and an executive director acknowledged no one had seen him since the previous weekend. Deputies confirmed 911 was not called until days after his likely death. Boorn says she hopes the tragedy will prompt better protocols and urges families to more frequently check on relatives in care settings.