Articles Posted in Elder Abuse

Many people suffer from some type of abuse through out their lives, whether it be verbal, physical, or sexual. The elderly are a huge group that suffer from abuse, mainly negligence. Here at the Law Offices Of Moseley Collins, we have dealt with numerous cases involving elder abuse.

I have here an accumulation of facts and statistics on elder abuse.

“Every year an estimated 2.1 million older Americans are victims of physical, psychological, or other forms of abuse and neglect. For every case of elder abuse and neglect reported to authorities, experts estimate that there may be as many as 5 cases not reported. Research suggests elders who have been abused tend to die earlier than those who are not abused, even in the absence of chronic conditions or life threatening disease.” Elder Abuse and Neglect: In Search of Solutions

In our Sacramento area, owners and two employees of a Citrus Heights care facility are being arrested and tried for the deaths of three of their elderly residents. It was around this time last year that a fire tore through the halls of the facility. All employees and some residents were able to escape the fire, with the exception of three.

Reports from the Sacramento Metropolitan Fire District are showing the reason why these two were not able to escape the fire was because of unlawful restraints that held them in their rooms. One woman, Doris Bower, was not able to leave because railing on the side of her bed prevented her from getting out. Another woman, Virginia Esler, was trapped in her room by a locked wheelchair. The third woman, Marjorie Leroux, had a bed that was completely surrounded by railing. People were able to get Marjorie out of the fire eventually, but she died several days later from trauma associated with the fire.

An investigation was carried out that showed the restraints in place during the fire were against safety regulations. Through the investigation, other violations were also revealed. The fire was discovered to be a result of a resident who ignited a stuffed chair in her bedroom with a cigarette. There are regulations within residential care facilities that do not allow for any patient with dementia to be allowed to smoke, except in designated areas. One of the owners found the fire that night and seemingly put it out. Unfortunately, the fire began to smolder again and began the disastrous fire that eventually ended in the death of three.