The family of a New Jersey woman who was hit by a car and killed in 2010 has filed a lawsuit against the nursing care facility from which the woman allegedly escaped on the night she died. In their lawsuit, the family alleges that the nursing home was negligent in allowing the woman to escape, especially given their knowledge of her mental disorders and the fact that she was at an elevated risk of leaving the facility without warning.
The incident occurred in May 2010 at about 1:00 a.m. According to court documents, the 74-year-old woman “eloped” through a side door of the nursing care facility and tried to cross a busy county road. She was struck by an oncoming vehicle and suffered multiple blunt force traumas, and was pronounced dead at the scene of the accident.
Now, the family is alleging that the nursing care facility should have taken more care to prevent the woman from escaping. A resident of the home since 2004, records indicate that facility staff was well aware of the woman’s mental disorders, which included short- and long-term memory loss, psychosis and schizophrenia. In addition, her records state that she was a known “elopement risk” who regularly “wanders with exit-seeking behaviors.”
Specifically, the family is accusing the nursing care facility of negligence, gross neglect, deviation of standard care, residents rights violations, improper management and consumer fraud.
If your family member has been injured or harmed as a result of nursing home neglect or abuse, please contact Breslin & Breslin for a free consultation.
Source: My Central Jersey, “Bridgewater nursing home sued by family of ill woman killed crossing Route 22,” Sergio Bichao, May 8, 2012