Elder Negligence?: Investigators Say Residents at Illegal Adult Group Home Allegedly Forced to Live in Prison Camp-Like Conditions
Investigators were disturbed to discover that residents at an illegal adult day care group home were forced residents to live in prison camp conditions. They reportedly were forced to stay in chicken coops and use buckets as toilets. The senior home is not licensed. A number of the residents are mentally disabled.
According to City Attorney James Penman, 22 patients were crammed into three rundown buildings that all lacked plumbing. Razor wire fences and padlocked gates surrounded the illegal elder facility. The house had reportedly be converted into part of the facility and people were residing in rooms as small as 6 feet. Some rooms contained a mattress and two beds.
Last Friday, Pensri Sophar Dalton, the owner of the senior home, was arrested. Police have charged her with 16 counts of causing harm to elderly people.
The facility is no longer in operation. The residents were either transferred to licensed care homes or picked up by relatives.
Our Chicago nursing home negligence lawyers are disturbed to hear that so many residents may have been living under such squalid and unsanitary conditions at a supposed elder care facility.
In order to legally function as a proper nursing home, an elder care facility must obtain the proper licensing. There are hygiene requirements and care protocols and sanitation procedures that must be followed.
The sick, the elderly, and the mentally disabled are especially at risk of becoming the victims of nursing home abuse or neglect. The damage suffered by a nursing negligence victim can impact his or her physical health and emotional well-being. It is a crime to abuse or neglect an elderly person.
Obtaining financial recovery can allow your loved one to cover costs and damages from the nursing home negligence incident.
Alleged elder abuse in San Bernardino, ABC Local, September 5, 2009
Related Web Resources:
Division of Professional Regulation, State of Illinois
Nursing Homes in Illinois, Illinois Department of Public Health
