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Sunday, June 28, 2009
State Inquiry Finds 8 Abuse Cases
By Colleen Heild
Copyright © 2009 Albuquerque Journal
Journal Investigative Reporter
Since his discharge in 1982 from Fort Stanton Hospital and Training School, a man known as E.P. has lived mostly on the streets.
For a time, home was a cardboard box.
He was among more than 1,000 former residents of state institutions for the developmentally disabled who were accounted for as part of a recently concluded investigation ordered by Gov. Bill Richardson.
But though they interviewed him, state social workers didn't put E.P. in the group of eight individuals who they deemed were abused, neglected or exploited since their release into the community more than 20 years ago.
His lawyer, Peter Cubra, says that's evidence of the flaws in the inquiry, which was to locate and ensure the welfare of former residents.
State officials, citing confidentiality laws, declined to provide further details on the eight cases substantiated by Adult Protective Services, but defended the state's efforts on behalf of former patients.
E. P. now has a guardian and is receiving state services for the developmentally disabled after Cubra took separate legal action last year.
But Cubra said the handling of E.P.'s case during the governor's investigation leaves him worried about other former residents who were — and weren't — assessed.
Richardson's office on June 12 released the results of the five-year investigation to locate former clients of Los Lunas and Fort Stanton institutions. The clients were released into the community between 1970 and 1987.
Richardson commissioned the inquiry in 2003 after Journal stories revealed three other former residents of Los Lunas hospital were sexually abused and medically neglected following their release to a hospital housekeeper's home in the 1980s.
The state later paid $15 million to settle a lawsuit filed on behalf of the women.
That case led to the filing in 2007 of a federal proposed class action lawsuit against the state on behalf of other former residents.
The lawsuit contends the state abandoned residents after discharging them into the community, leaving them exposed to abuse, neglect and exploitation.
The attorney defending the state, Jerry Walz of Albuquerque, said the governor's investigation was thorough.
He said that, compared to the number of people tracked and assessed, eight substantiated cases are not statistically significant.
"The bottom line is the community of people discharged ... overall is in pretty darned good shape," Walz said.
The pending federal lawsuit alleges former residents were released to private homes, commercial enterprises, boarding homes, group homes or relatives without proper planning or oversight by the state.
The releases came prior to the time period that was the subject of another lawsuit filed over conditions at the institutions. Both Los Lunas and Fort Stanton hospitals have since closed.
Governor's findings
The governor's investigation, which was headed by Santa Fe lawyer Nancy Long and involved private investigators, cost more than $308,000.
Long reported that 245 former residents were dead, with 786 still living.
Of those surviving, all but five were located, living in New Mexico and other states.
Of those, "199 individuals were referred to APS (Adult Protective Services) as a matter of routine and also out of an abundance of caution," said Gilbert Gallegos, Richardson's spokesman said last week.
That led to actual investigations by APS of 136 cases, of which eight were substantiated, Gallegos said.
Gallegos said, "In some situations where warranted, assistance (such as government benefits or services) was made available by APS."
Richardson's office released a statement along with the investigation results.
"As a result of this investigation and measures taken since Governor Richardson was first made aware of this situation, he is confident this (the experience of the three women) will never again happen to our most vulnerable citizens."
State effort criticized
Cubra, who is on the legal team that filed the pending federal lawsuit, faulted Long's investigation for not going far enough.
"Their failure to even look at the hundreds of deaths is highly problematic, and no one has explained why no one from protective services has checked on 75 percent of the people who are reported to be alive."
Cubra said he and other on the legal team suing the state have begun to look into some of the deaths.
"We know of two people who died in a fire that was avoidable, and we know of an individual who recently appeared to have died from malnutrition in the last year," he said.
Walz said there was nothing in the death records that "set off any alarms" to justify any "cold case investigations."
He added: "What we do will never be enough to satisfy some individuals."
Cubra said he learned about the man identified as E.P. a year and a half after Long had referred E.P.'s case to APS.
"Due to his cognitive impairment, he was incapable of managing his money and was incapable of managing the medication he needs to take daily," Cubra said.
Protective services officials should have found self-neglect but didn't, he said.
"If his case didn't warrant intervention, how many other homeless people who are utterly incapable of taking care of themselves are still out there with no assistance?" Cubra asked.
Walz said he couldn't comment about individual cases.
"At the appropriate time, the record will come out that will tell the full and correct and truthful story," he said.
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