CLO fined $10K for abuse of residents

Additional police investigation of criminal charges pending

A nonprofit program that runs a Lawrence group home for developmentally disabled adults was hit with the maximum fine of $10,000 Tuesday after state officials confirmed reports of abuse.

“The nature of the offense is considered severe,” said Barb Conant, spokeswoman for the Kansas Department on Aging. The department is charged with inspecting group homes for people with disabilities.

The fine was the most allowed by state law.

Late last month, officials at Community Living Opportunities announced they had discovered a supervisor at Ponderosa House, 1205 E. 26th St., had abused several residents.

The abuse, they said, was reported to state officials as quickly as CLO higher-ups became aware of the problem and the supervisor was fired. Ten employees were later terminated for witnessing – but not reporting – the abuse.

In an e-mail to the Journal-World, Jamie Price, CLO’s Director of Kansas Services, said the Department on Aging’s 17-day investigation upheld CLO’s earlier findings.

More about the CLO troubles

“Concern for the well-being of the individuals under our care is always our highest priority, which is why we reacted swiftly and aggressively as soon as we learned of the situation,” Price said.

She declined to say how long the supervisor had been employed by CLO.

Police investigating

Several former Ponderosa House employees have said they’ve been interviewed by Lawrence Police as part of an investigation into whether to file criminal charges against the supervisor. The investigation is pending.

Abuse at CLO

The abuse confirmed by CLO and Department on Aging investigations includes:

¢ The supervisor at Ponderosa House, a woman, taunted, manhandled and verbally abused the home’s eight residents, all of whom are considered severely disabled.

¢ To punish bad behavior, the house manager would, on occasion, throw a resident’s meal in the trash.

¢ During the day, a resident who’s blind and unable to speak was often made to stand “for long periods of time” in an effort to keep her from falling asleep and to cause her to sleep at night.

Oftentimes, people who are blind lose track of time and may sleep during the day and be awake at night.

¢ When the blind resident wet herself, the house manager made her stand outside alone in urine-soaked clothing, for three to four hours on at least one occasion.

The house manager knew the resident feared being left alone outside.

Former Ponderosa House employees said the blind woman was not incontinent and only wet herself when she was upset.

¢ Several employees said they feared losing their jobs if they reported the supervisor’s abuse.

“At this point, it’s not been turned over to my office for consideration,” said Douglas County Dist. Atty. Charles Branson. “If or when it is, we’ll be more than happy to review the evidence to see if what can be proved in court warrants filing charges.”

In keeping with a new state law, the Department on Aging’s findings have been forwarded to the Kansas Attorney General’s Office and to the federally funded Disability Rights Center of Kansas.

The Disability Rights Center may file a civil lawsuit on behalf of the Ponderosa House residents.

The Attorney General’s Office could file criminal charges if Branson does not. Branson, too, could ask the attorney general to take over the case.

Whitney Watson, a spokesman for Atty. Gen. Phill Kline, said he was aware of the Department on Aging’s investigation.

“I can’t comment specifically on that case,” he said.

Watson noted the Attorney General’s Office is prosecuting two former Ponderosa House employees – Eric Scott Wyatt and Dustin Dean Taylor – accused of abusing residents in June 2005.

Taylor is due in court June 19; Wyatt on Aug. 14.

‘Do something’

Lorrie Coleman worked at Ponderosa House for about seven weeks before she was fired last month. She welcomed news of the $10,000 fine.

“Somebody needs to do something about that place,” she said. “There were a lot of nights I was the only person working there – and there were eight people living there.

“There was one night I was changing this person’s diaper when the blind woman got up and started walking around,” she said.

“Another time, one of the women started throwing a fit – she would bite herself real bad so we were supposed to stay with her,” Coleman said. “At the exact same time she was having a fit, another guy had a seizure – and I’m the only one there.”

Coleman denied she failed to report the supervisor’s abuse.

CLO operates 38 homes in Lawrence. All but two have three or four residents.

Ponderosa House is one of two CLO homes in Lawrence with eight residents.