Jury Returns $1.1 Million Verdict Against California Nursing Home
Frances Tanner
Seventy-nine year old Frances Tanner was mobile and involved in life admitted to the Colonial Healthcare nursing home in March 2005, suffering from mild dementia. Seven months later, she died from an infected bedsore after falling and breaking her hip.
Her family filed a lawsuit against Colonial Healthcare and its parent company, Horizon West of Rocklin, alleging the entities were responsible for her untimely death. This week, after deliberating less than two days, a jury agreed and awarded $1.1 million in damages for her pain and suffering and her daughter's loss of companionship. After deciding that the facility's conduct was "malicious, oppressive, or fraudulent", the jury will hear further testimony about the corporation's finances before deciding on punitive damages.
Colonial Healthcare, which was formerly known as Hilltop Manor, has had a history of problems in caring for its residents. Frances Tanner's case was the fourth case in recent time in which the facility was cited for the death of a resident.
