Been Caught Stealing
July 25, 2022
“If I get by, it’s mine, mine, mine, mine, mine, mine, mine…” - Jane’s Addiction
Georgiana Health and Rehabilitation, LLC (“Georgiana Nursing Home” in Georgiana, Alabama, Butler County) hired a nurse and allowed or permitted the nurse, without oversight or intervention, to steal medications from residents from approximately November 2020 through January 2021.
Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall mixed no words in describing the acts of this Georgiana Nursing Home nurse – “Her conviction should serve notice to others that the exploitation of nursing home patients will not be tolerated.”
Exploitation? Yes, exploitation. That is because when you send a loved one to a nursing home, they are in the hands of the owners, operators, and staff of that nursing home. The nursing home is paid large sums of money each month to provide care to your loved one. Further, Georgiana Nursing Home’s staff has a duty to meet the standard of care for each resident. Allowing resident’s medications to be stolen by one of their own nurses, who Georgiana Nursing Home hired and retained during the entire escapade, was a breach in the standard of care each time a resident did not receive their medication. The focus of the criminal investigation was on the nurse, but in a civil case, both the nurse AND Georgiana Nursing Home are responsible for these breaches in the standard of care. Make no mistake, Georgiana Nursing Home failed these residents.
Think about it this way. If the local bank hired someone, and they began stealing cash from the bank, do you think it would take them roughly 75 days to figure out someone is stealing from the inside?
The video for the song Been Caught Stealing paints a picture of what probably was going on at Georgiana Nursing Home. In the video, set in a mini-market, there are all kinds of acts going on. At first, the security guard is oblivious, and by the end, the security guard is enjoying the company of those stealing from the store. The video, however, only reflects one day of the steal. Maybe after 75 days, the security guard changes his mind and decides to report the theft.
75 days, yes, that is how long a nurse was allowed to steal medications from residents at Georgiana Nursing Home. A whopping 638 pills. On the street, those same pills may go for around $3,000 or more. This is no Robin Hood story, but rather, a nurse motivated by greed, and more importantly for the purposes of our story, a nurse who saw an opportunity.
This nurse pled guilty in Butler County, Alabama of four counts of second degree theft of property, which is a felony. The property stolen was pills of nursing home residents at Georgian Health and Rehabilitation (“Georgiana Nursing Home”). There, however, is a bigger issue here, namely, why did the nursing home, Georgian Health and Rehabilitation, fail all these residents so badly?
Were these medications completely unnecessary or were they necessary and residents needlessly suffered as a result? Either category of harm may be a potential civil claim. If you have a loved one who was a resident at Georgiana Nursing Home between November 2020 and January 2021, they may have a potential personal injury claim or their Estate may have a potential wrongful death claim. Further, they or their Estate may have breach of contract, conversion, breach of fiduciary duty or other claims related to financial injury or damages. Finally, there may be a claim if the medication was medically unnecessary.
If you have a loved one who was a resident at Georgiana Nursing Home between November 2020 and January 2021, your loved one or their Estate may have a potential claim.
We are happy to evaluate the potential case.
Please click here to access our “Free Case Evaluation” form, and we will be in touch within 24 hours of your case submission. Or, feel free to text us at (205) 651-5808 or call us at (205) 259-1678.
Additional information concerning Georgiana Nursing Home:
The Greenville Advocate
Photo courtesy of:
Georgiana Nursing Home facebook page
https://www.facebook.com/GeorgianaHealthandRehab
Background story/information on the theft:
Alabama News Network
AL.com
Alabama Attorney General's Office:
Jane's Addiction Video