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Below is an ongoing list of recent nursing home abuse and negligence cases. This page is regularly updated to provide information on recent elder abuse lawsuits and settlements.

Colorado 2019

One resident beat two other nursing home residents. The resident who perpetrated the attacks had a history of violence. The first victim of the abuse filed a lawsuit and the case went to trial. The jury awarded the victim $3.6 million. Part of the reason why the jury verdict was so high was the level of culpability in the nursing home’s conduct. Rather than telling the assaulted resident’s family of the assault, the staff lied and informed the family that the reason for the injuries was that the resident fell. The second resident has recently sued the nursing home as well. Among the claims in the lawsuit is that the nursing home was understaffed and was not able to supervise its residents. Nursing homes are generally responsible for acts of violence that its residents commit against other residents, as they have the obligation to supervise.

Sources:

https://www.denverpost.com/2018/10/11/peregrine-senior-living-aurora-patient-bitten/

https://www.denverpost.com/2019/06/19/renew-aurora-nursing-home-sued-dementia-patients/

Ohio 2019

A nursing home resident was brutally beaten and died two months later. The staff member who committed the assault was charged criminally. In the assault, the resident suffered facial fractures and lacerations. Like many lawsuits for nursing home abuse, the family also alleged that the nursing home was understaffed and the staff were not properly trained and supervised. The family has claimed that staff had been known to joke that “you could kill someone and not get fired” because of the turnover and the failure of nursing home operators to adequately staff the facility. In his statement to police, the staff member complained of being overworked.

Source: https://www.daytondailynews.com/news/crime–law/family-sues-area-nursing-home-worker-for-alleged-abuse/EhlFgb2Bff4dyHaAcDimpI/#

Pennsylvania 2019

The humiliation of a nursing home resident is also a form of abuse which can have physical effects on the victim. Degrading behavior can impact a resident psychologically, which can then have physical symptoms. In this case, nursing home staff allegedly took nude pictures of a resident and then posted them on social media. The woman who was in the picture was naked from the waist down and sitting on the toilet. She sensed something was wrong, even though she was unable to speak, and tried to cover up in front of the camera. An anonymous caller let the family know that the woman’s picture was on social media.

Source: https://pittsburgh.cbslocal.com/2019/06/25/lawsuit-butler-county-paramount-senior-living-nude-photos/

Oregon 2019

A woman filed an $18 million lawsuit on behalf of her mother who died after weeks of mistreatment at a nursing home. The lawsuit alleges both abuse and neglect in the case. The woman allegedly was not bathed for a week and was not given her medication for two weeks. Several nurses were also alleged to have inflicted abuse and injury on the woman. One of the staff members was charged with seven felonies in connection with conduct that impacted the defendant. At the same time, the resident was given a toxic dose of an opiate.

Source: https://www.oregonlive.com/pacific-northwest-news/2019/03/neglect-at-ashland-nursing-home-caused-extended-suffering-for-weeks-suit-claims.html

Indiana 2019

A nursing home had an employee on staff who was a convicted killer and a child rapist. Nursing homes have a legal obligation to perform background checks on prospective employees because they cannot employ anyone who has been convicted of a felony. Even though the crime was over 30 years ago, the nursing home still could not hire this individual. Had the nursing home complied with this legal obligation, this particular individual would not have been hired. Instead, according to the lawsuit, the staff member sexually abused a female resident of the nursing home, causing her physical and psychological harm.

Source: https://www.theindychannel.com/news/call-6-investigators/family-claims-convicted-killer-sexually-abused-elderly-woman-while-working-at-carmel-nursing-home

California 2019

A California family was awarded $42.5 million jury verdict in one of the largest nursing home abuse verdicts ever handed down by a jury. $35 million of the verdict consisted of punitive damages against the nursing home due to the shocking nature of its conduct. The nursing home gave the resident a drug that was not prescribed for 26 days straight. The drug was a potent psychiatric drug that carried a black box warning. The woman attempted to eat while under the influence of the drug and choked to death on a chicken nugget. Giving a resident a psychiatric drug without the proper prescription and documentation to keep them compliant and docile is a form of nursing home abuse.

Source: https://www.sacbee.com/news/local/article229700034.html

Illinois 2018

A video surfaced of sustained cruelty by a group of nursing home staff to an elderly resident with dementia. The video showed staff members surrounding the man and taunting him, subjecting him to verbal abuse. The staff members ordered the man to pull his pants down in an effort to humiliate him. The nursing home in this case has been sued multiple times, including an incident where a nurse sedated six residents, causing them to need to be rushed to the emergency room.

Source: https://chicago.cbslocal.com/2018/10/23/holland-home-elderly-abuse/

Texas 2018

A 65-year old woman with dementia was sexually assaulted by another resident of the nursing home. Instead of reporting and investigating the assault, the nursing home staff allegedly engaged in a cover-up. Nursing homes have an obligation to investigate and report every single abuse allegation, whether it seems credible or not. Here, the lawsuit claims that the nursing home failed to monitor the assailant, who was taking antipsychotic medications. The nursing home has maintained that the resident was responsible for her own injuries notwithstanding criminal charges against the alleged assailant and an extensive government report on the alleged assault.

Sources: https://www.click2houston.com/news/patient-sexually-assaulted-at-willowbrook-area-nursing-home

Indiana 2018

A family filed a lawsuit against a nursing home for injuries suffered by a resident that contributed to his death. The elderly man was only a resident of this particular home for about two months. One day, he showed extensive injuries that would be consistent with an assault. While the nursing home claimed he was injured after falling out of bed, it could not be concluded that the resident had not been assaulted. The nursing home fired two staff members in connection with the incident. The resident died roughly a month after the alleged assault occurred.

Source: https://www.theindychannel.com/news/call-6-investigators/family-claims-elderly-father-died-after-being-abused-at-greenwood-nursing-home

Indiana 2018

A family filed a lawsuit against a nursing home for injuries suffered by a resident that contributed to his death. The elderly man was only a resident of this particular home for about two months. One day, he showed extensive injuries that would be consistent with an assault. While the nursing home claimed he was injured after falling out of bed, it could not be concluded that the resident had not been assaulted. The nursing home fired two staff members in connection with the incident. The resident died roughly a month after the alleged assault occurred.

Source: https://www.theindychannel.com/news/call-6-investigators/family-claims-elderly-father-died-after-being-abused-at-greenwood-nursing-home

Pennsylvania 2018

A Pennsylvania jury awarded $6.75 million to the family of a nursing home resident who was sexually abused by another resident of the facility. Nursing homes are generally liable for all sexual assaults that are committed by residents under their care. The resident who committed the assault was a convicted sex offender and the facility had an obligation to either more closely monitor him or to not admit him. When this happens, the facility itself can be found negligent.

Source: https://lancasteronline.com/news/local/garden-spot-village-to-pay-m-to-family-of-woman/article_df9f90e2-4fce-11e8-acb5-4b2aa492ab4f.html

New Hampshire 2018

A family settled a wrongful death lawsuit against a nursing home after their family member died in an assault committed by another resident. The assailant attempted to strangle the other resident which led to death by coronary artery disease. The lawsuit alleged that the nursing home did not provide adequate security to protect the resident who died. Given the assailant’s propensity for violence, he should have been kept under close watch, moved to a different part of the nursing home, or never admitted him in the first place.

Source: https://www.laconiadailysun.com/news/courts_cops/settlement-reached-in-wrongful-death-suit-against-golden-view/article_9d9d46a4-f8c9-11e8-9d95-6f8f8c127115.html

Delaware 2017

The family of a deceased resident sued a nursing home for abusing the resident by giving him psychotropic drugs without the proper documentation and prescription. The resident’s death was attributed to the medication.

Source: https://www.aarp.org/health/drugs-supplements/info-2017/wrongful-death-lawsuit-nursing-home-fd.html