The caregiver for an elderly deaf man in Tennessee was accused of becoming frustrated with her patient and allegedly throwing a pot of boiling water at him leaving him with second and third-degree burns.
According to reports, late in the evening on January 21, a 45-year-old woman who has worked as a caregiver for 15 years was taking care of her patient in a group home in Memphis. The elderly man is hearing impaired, in addition to having diagnoses of schizophrenia and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. The patient was boiling water in a pot so he could prepare noodles, and the caregiver, who was allegedly angry, reportedly told him to leave the kitchen and go to the living room.
The man did as she asked, but the woman was reportedly still upset. She allegedly grabbed the pot, in which the water was now boiling, and threw it at her patient. The police report says the man had severe burns on “his face, shoulder, and right side of his back.”
The woman got in touch with her supervisor and reported the situation, and when she got to work the following day, she realized no one called the authorities. She called for help, and an ambulance took the man to Regional One Burn Center where he was diagnosed with needing a skin graft for his second and third-degree burns. When asked, the man informed the medical staff that he got burned when he tripped with a pot of hot water in his hands, but they remained suspicious that he might have been harmed by someone.
The Memphis Police Department was notified, and the alleged victim gave them a different account of how he was burned. The man said his caregiver threw the water on him.
On March 18, the woman, who has won awards for her work, was taken into custody and booked into the Shelby County Detention Center. She is facing preliminary charges of one felony count of aggravated abuse of a vulnerable adult and one misdemeanor count of simple assault. She was freed three days later, after posting a $50,000 bond. It was reported that she was fired from her job.
If you or someone you love is suspected of a criminal offense, contact Orange County criminal defense lawyer Staycie R. Sena at (949) 477-8088 for a consultation now.