"I have never, ever hurt anyone. I would never hurt him," said Tammy Felbaum, 42, of Pittsburgh, PA. Tammy is a transsexual who is charged with homicide, aggravated assault, reckless endangerment and practicing medicine without a license in connection with the death of her husband, James Felbaum, on Feb. 25. Tammy denies killing her husband, saying he caused his own death by overdosing on drugs after castrating himself. Felbaum said she fell asleep in the living room while her husband was in the bedroom. When she awakened, she found he had castrated himself. She said after she found out about the castration, she gave him ice packs, pain medication and kept him comfortable for the next two and a half days. When she awakened early Sunday morning, he was unresponsive.

Authorities said that because of the pain from the castration and an overdose of pain medication, James Felbaum's gag reflex was numb and he choked on his own vomit. Police speculate that Tammy Felbaum performed the surgery and evidence taken from the couple's mobile home in rural Marion in Butler County supports their claim. Among the evidence is a letter in which James Felbaum consented to the procedure. Felbaum, though, said her husband performed the surgery on himself, without her knowledge and while she slept. Along with the being charged for killing her husband, Tammy is also being investigated for animal cruelty and neglect due to an unusually large number of animal graves in her backyard.

- DailyDarwin.com Staff