Thursday, March 27, 2008

Denton State School will be investigated following allegations of abuse and neglect

The Denton State School (Texas) for people with disabilities is under review following dozens of allegations of abuse and neglect at the facility.

According to The Dallas Morning News, the facility, which is home to 600 people with physical and intellectual disabilities, first made headlines in 2002 when a young male resident nearly died after being beaten into a coma by an employee who was coming down from a drug-induced rage.

The investigation of the Denton State School comes two years after the US Justice Department found widespread abuse and neglect inside the Lubbock State School (Texas) for people with disabilities. A report after that investigation cited poor medical care, improperly restrained and sedated residents, and more that 17 deaths at the institution during an 18-month period. It is claimed that 66 percent of its residents had been injured by another resident.

In one cited case, employees found a woman unresponsive but did not perform CPR or call for help for half an hour. According to paramedics, the woman had been dead for hours. According to investigators, the employees falsified reports to indicate that someone had been looking in on the woman.

Last year, a review of the 13 state institutions for people with disabilities by the Dallas Morning News found thousands of allegations of abuse and neglect. Apparently, hundreds of these allegations have been confirmed.

Read the full article here.