Oklahoma Nursing Home Resident Charged With Rape
Ninety-four year old nursing home resident Lester Pendergraft was charged with rape by instrumentation in Oklahoma County District Court on February 26, 2009. He is accused of a September 2008 sexual assault on a sixty-seven year old female resident at Grace Living Center in Edmond, Oklahoma.
Two facilitiy aides caught Mr. Pendergraft in the room of the female resident and stopped the assault. The woman was shaking and crying and was aware of the assault. However, the incident was not reported to police or family members for two hours. By then, the woman had been bathed and her clothing put in the laundry. In a written statement, Grace Living Center officials said, "Grace Living Center Edmond takes the responsibility to protect all residents seriously. We discovered the incident and immediately took steps to provide for the safety and care of the residents; we reported the matter to the health department and police." Police, however, reportedly told health officials that the nursing home facility handled the situation quite poorly. The facility Administrator told police that he thought "the situation was being blown out of proportion".
The state Health Department investigated the facility and cited the facility for six federal violations.
The woman's daughter contacted Wes Bledsoe of A Perfect Cause for support. Mr. Bledsoe does not wish to see Mr. Pendergraft sent to prison if he's found guilty, but, rather, believes a conviction would serve as an alert to keep Mr. Pendergraft from being left alone with other vulnerable nursing home residents in the future.
The Terry Law Firm is experienced in handling cases of nursing home sexual abuse. Please contact us at 1 (888) 317-2525 or visit us at www.nursinghomejustice.com.
