Last Update: 7/13/2020
A man has been arrested on sexual assault charges for allegedly forcibly touching a resident at a nursing home in Sodus.
63-year-old Kenneth Hayes was arrested on Tuesday, January 21. Hayes is a resident at the Sodus Rehabilitation and Nursing Center and is accused of sexually assaulting a fellow resident.
Following his arrest, he was arraigned and has been released on his own recognizance.
He is scheduled to appear in Sodus Town Court on February 3 at 10 a.m.
Sodus Rehabilitation and Nursing Center has previously been criticized for allegations of nursing home neglect.
In 2019, the facility was issued 9 violations following an investigation by the New York State Department of Health. Investigators found violations related to alleged lack of adequate care for patients, failure to protect patients from infections, and food-related offenses.
Sodus has been cited for health and safety violations a total of 102 times since October 2015.
Attorney contributor Laurence Banville represents sexual assault victims and victims of nursing home neglect in civil lawsuits. We’ve asked Laurence to weigh in with some of his thoughts on the legal rights of nursing home abuse victims and their families:
Countless American families trust nursing homes to take care of their loved ones when these loved ones are no longer able to care for themselves. But sadly, not all nursing homes deserve this trust. Abuse and neglect are major problems in nursing homes and there have been widespread reports of nursing home residents being sexually abused by other residents, employees, visitors, and intruders.
Nursing homes have a legal duty to protect their residents from preventable dangers, including sexual abuse. When one nursing home resident is charged with sexually assaulting another, it’s important to investigate whether the facility met this legal duty. Some of these cases are preventable and happen partly due to negligence, such as inadequate security. In cases of negligence, nursing home abuse victims and their families may have grounds for a lawsuit against the nursing home.
If you or a loved one is a victim of nursing home abuse, you can learn more about your family’s legal options in a free consultation with one of our experienced nursing home abuse lawyers.