A circuit court judge denied bond
Thursday for a former nursing home aide charged with sexually
assaulting the elderly patients under his care.
The nursing home CNA, is charged with four counts of aggravated sexual
battery against four different patients. He has been in jail since his
arrest in August, and is likely to stay incarcerated pending his trial
in January.
The man’s defense lawyer, argued that he should be
eligible for bond as a citizen with a long work history and ties to the
area, and no prior criminal convictions or charges. Bristol Commonwealth’s Attorney argued that the violent
crime the man is charged with carries a presumption that bond should be
denied. The victims in this case were elderly, suffered from dementia and Alzheimer’s disease, and “were truly vulnerable,” he said. He also argued that the man was supposed to be a caretaker who could be trusted.
Before his
arrest, the man had lived with his mother for 19 years in a Bristol
house owned by his grandmother. The grandmother has moved out and lives
in a motel, according to his testimony. Under questioning the man testified that he would not need a job to support himself if the
judge allowed him to post bail, and that he could stay with his mother. The man also acknowledged that he suffers from depression and takes medication for the condition. For more, read the story.
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Robert W. Carter,
Jr. is a Virginia attorney whose law practice is dedicated to
protecting the rights of the victims of nursing home and assisted
living neglect and abuse in Richmond, Roanoke, Norfolk, Lynchburg,
Danville, Charlottesville, and across Virginia.
