Sexual Abuse of Georgia Nursing Home Residents
When elderly loved ones require more extensive supervision and care than family members can provide, the selection of a nursing home facility can be a daunting task. While most families would never suspect that their elderly family member might become the victim of someone that the facility knows is a registered sex offender, a recent story in the USA Today reveals that this false sense of security may be misplaced.
The newspaper reports that William Cubbage a registered repeat sex offender sexually assaulted a 95-year-old female resident of the nursing home facility. Cubbage had been a resident in a civil commitment unit for sex offenders for 8 years immediately prior to moving into the nursing home. The man had been committed following convictions in four separate cases involving allegations of intent to commit sexual abuse, indecent contact with a child and lascivious acts with a child. Ironically, the sex offender's act of sexual abuse toward the elderly nursing home resident was revealed by an 8-year-old girl who was visiting a loved in the nursing home according to the news report.
While sexual assault by a repeat sex offender of an elderly nursing home resident is appalling, the details make the case even more of a cautionary tale for families with elderly loved ones. The administrator of the nursing home, who was fined by the state regulatory agency, not only knew that Cubbage was a sex offender but reportedly instructed employees that their employment would be terminated if they disclosed to anyone that Cubbage or another known registered sex offender resided at the facility.
Poor economic conditions have created a powerful motivation for nursing home administrators to look the other way or cover up the status of registered sex offenders to increase occupancy. A spokesman for A Perfect Cause, a nursing home watchdog group, recently found that nursing homes in the state where this incident occurred house almost 2,000 registered sex offenders. Further, the watchdog group recently documented at least 80 cases of rape, murder and assault by convicted sex offenders while residing in the state.
However, this is a national problem that is affecting nursing homes across the U.S. A report prepared for Congress by the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) indicated that 75,000 registered sex offenders reside in nursing homes. The GAO report also suggested that these numbers are significantly understated because of conflicting reporting practices between states and the FBI.
Put Our Law Firm's Over 39 Years of Legal Experience to Work For Your Case
When nursing homes fail to adequately screen employees or to protect residents from acts of sexual abuse by other residents, the nursing home may be liable for the resulting emotional and physical harm. If your loved one has been the victim of sexual abuse or any other form of nursing home abuse or neglect, our Atlanta nursing home injury lawyers at Montlick and Associates have been representing injury victims for over thirty years throughout all of Georgia and the Southeast, including but not limited to Albany, Athens, Atlanta, Augusta, Columbus, Gainesville, Macon, Marietta, Rome, Roswell, Savannah, Smyrna, Valdosta, Warner Robins and all smaller cities and rural areas in the state. No matter where you are located our attorneys are just a phone call away, and we will even come to you. Call us 24 hours a day/7 days a week for your Free Consultation at 1-800-LAW-NEED (1-800-529-6333). You can also visit us online at www.montlick.com and use our Free Case Evaluation Form or 24-hour Live Online Chat.