(MONTGOMERY)–Attorney General Steve Marshall announced today the conviction of three former employees of a Centre nursing home for failing to properly provide care for a resident of the facility. Sandra Michele Curry, and Kacey Minerva Allen, both residents of Centre, and Shawna Rogers, a resident of Rome, Georgia, each pleaded guilty in Cherokee County Circuit Court to one count of attempted elder abuse, a class C felony.

“Alabama law recognizes that the care of those who are vulnerable is a serious responsibility, and those who are entrusted with this charge have a legal obligation to properly fulfill their duties,” said Attorney General Marshall. “These defendants not only failed to provide adequate care, but they were shown to have lied about their negligence that resulted in harm and injury to a nursing home patient.” Curry had been employed as a licensed practical nurse at Cherokee County Health and Rehabilitation in Centre, and both Allen and Rogers were employed at the same facility as certified nursing assistants.

An investigation conducted by the Attorney General’s Medicaid Fraud Control Unit determined that, during the defendants’ shift on the night of September 3-4, 2016; they failed to check on a resident of the facility who was under their care. During that time, the bedridden resident incurred ant bites on her thighs, knees, and ankles, which were not discovered until the next morning. Although the defendants documented that they had provided care to the resident during their shift, a review of video from the facility showed that none of them entered the resident’s room during their shift. The victim did not require medical treatment for the ant bites.

Each of the defendants was sentenced to two years imprisonment, which was suspended, and they were placed on three years of probation. Curry was required to surrender her nursing license. Each defendant will be barred from working in a healthcare facility in the future. Attorney General Marshall thanked the staff at the facility for their timely reporting of the incident and he commended the staff of his Medicaid Fraud Control Unit for its thorough investigation and prosecution of this matter.