A former nursing home employee has been sentenced to 35 years in prison for raping a resident. The employee had been convicted of
first-degree rape in the August 2007 attack on the woman who lived at
the home.
The 33-year-old male employee will have to serve almost 30 years in prison before he’ll be eligible for parole.
Prosecutors say the employee admitted engaging in a sex act
with the victim, but his defense attorney says there is no evidence the
woman was raped.
Records show the woman died in 2007. For more, read the story.
My heart goes out to the rape victim and her family. The memories
of a brutal attack and rape will never leave them. It is important for nursing homes to carefully screen and monitor all employees. These people are paid to care for some of the most defenseless members of our society. When a criminal and violent act such as rape occurs to an elderly person who has been entrusted to the nursing home’s protection, the nursing home is ultimately responsible for that resident’s pain and suffering.
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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.
