DANGER IN NURSING HOMES? LEGISLATION WOULD REVEAL PRESENCE OF SEX OFFENDERS TO STAFF, RESIDENTS.Byline: Steve Geissinger Sacramento Bureau Spurred by a recent report that found nearly 70 registered sex offenders live in California nursing homes, a state lawmaker will push for legislation to force the names of all offenders to be disclosed to nursing home staff and residents. Assemblyman Juan Vargas For the Peruvian football (soccer) player of the same name, see . For the Dominican baseball player in the Negro Leagues, see . Juan Vargas (born March 7, 1961) is a Democrat and former member of the California State Assembly. , D-Chula Vista, plans to introduce a bill early this week requiring immediate disclosure of the names of offenders. ``People having notice is the best way to protect ourselves and our family,'' Vargas said in a television interview in San Diego San Diego (săn dēā`gō), city (1990 pop. 1,110,549), seat of San Diego co., S Calif., on San Diego Bay; inc. 1850. San Diego includes the unincorporated communities of La Jolla and Spring Valley. Coronado is across the bay. . Vargas made his comments after the release of the report from a national nonprofit nursing-home watchdog group, A Perfect Cause, which has an office in Beverly Hills Beverly Hills, city (1990 pop. 31,971), Los Angeles co., S Calif., completely surrounded by the city of Los Angeles; inc. 1914. The largely residential city is home to many motion-picture and television personalities. . ``This is just the tip of the iceberg tip of the iceberg n. pl. tips of the iceberg A small evident part or aspect of something largely hidden: afraid that these few reported cases of the disease might only be the tip of the iceberg. ,'' said Wes Bledsoe, president of A Perfect Cause, which is based in Oklahoma. ``There are likely more registered sex offenders and other predators in California nursing homes.'' The organization matched online sex offender profiles against a database of nursing home addresses, finding 66 sex offenders living in 57 nursing homes across California. The group's study was part of a broader national report that Bledsoe said uncovered cases of rape and assault by violent offenders living in nursing homes outside California. One involved a California sex offender who relocated to a Nevada facility, where he allegedly sexually assaulted two female residents, Bledsoe said. Two other cases outside California include a 78-year-old female resident who was raped by a 43-year-old double amputee am·pu·tee n. A person who has had one or more limbs removed by amputation. . In another instance, a 73-year-old female resident was raped by an 83-year-old wheelchair-bound molester mo·lest tr.v. mo·lest·ed, mo·lest·ing, mo·lests 1. To disturb, interfere with, or annoy. 2. To subject to unwanted or improper sexual activity. , Bledsoe said. ``Our study dispels the myths that only elderly offenders are being placed in nursing homes, that just because they are older they no longer pose a threat to others, and that child molesters are not a danger to elders,'' he said. At the request of Los Angeles Los Angeles (lôs ăn`jələs, lŏs, ăn`jəlēz'), city (1990 pop. 3,485,398), seat of Los Angeles co., S Calif.; inc. 1850. Congressman Henry Waxman Henry Arnold Waxman (born September 12, 1939 in Los Angeles, California) is an American politician. He has represented California's At-large congressional district (map) in the U.S. House of Representatives since 1975. , the U.S. Government Accountability Office The Government Accountability Office (GAO) is the audit, evaluation, and investigative arm of the United States Congress, and thus an agency in the Legislative Branch of the United States Government. launched a federal probe that is expected to be completed in the next few months. Federal officials were not immediately available for comment over the weekend on the new report. Vargas said he expects his bill to pass the Democratic-dominated Legislature. Republican Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's aides could not be immediately reached for comment. California officials and a nursing home association have said in the past that there have been no reports of sexual assaults on residents by sex offenders living in the state's nursing and board-and-care homes. State officials also have said that they identify sex offenders to nursing home administrators. But they acknowledged that the information is not always passed along to those running the facilities, to the residents, and to their families. No state law requires that residents of homes be notified if a sexual predator is living next door. Steve Geissinger, (916) 447-9302 sgeissinger(at)angnewspapers.com |
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