SPOKANE -- A Spokane man plead guilty this afternoon to second-degree criminal mistreatment for the death of his 91-year-old grandmother last October. He was given credit for time already served and has spent the last year in jail, so today he is free.

Police say Michael Bourassa left his grandmother in bed for weeks, covered in sores, maggots and human waste. Paramedics say bed springs were embedded in the woman's back. Elsie Gettman died after spending five days in the hospital.

The family's home at 808 East Euclid was so filthy, police officers and paramedics had to wear hazardous materials suits to enter.

In a jail interview with KREM 2 News after his arrest, Bourassa said he was living with his mother and grandmother, when he was suddenly left as the sole cartaker for Gettman.

He said over time, the chore became too much for him to handle.

"From living in the house, you build a shell from society around you," Bourassa said. "You sort of feel like a mouse that's trapped under a cat's paw with no escape."

Prosecutors originally charged Bourassa with second-degree murder.