Redlands Independent & Assisted Living Facility Hit With Lawsuit for Inadequate Care

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Apr 19, 2012, 12:19 ET

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REDLANDS, Calif., April 19, 2012 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- A lawsuit was filed against Mission Commons Retirement Residence, a Redlands, Calif., independent and assisted living facility, and its parent company Harvest Facility Holdings, LP (which alleges it manages more than 300 facilities nationwide), alleging that the plaintiff Jack K. Hanson, Sr. and other residents at the facility did not receive the quality of the services they paid for and the facility is not staffed or operated in compliance with California law.

Jack K. Hanson, Sr., by and through his Successor in Interest Jack K. Hanson, Jr., on behalf of himself and similarly situated consumers, vs. Fortress Investment Group, LLC; Harvest GP Holdings, LLC; Harvest Facility Holdings, LP; Harvest General Partner, LLC; Mission Commons Retirement Residence, LP; Harvest Management Sub LLC; Katherine Del Sol, and individual; and DOES 1 through 250, inclusive (Case No: BC483042) was filed in Los Angeles County Superior Court alleging violations of the Consumer Legal Remedies Act and violations of the Business Professions Code.

The lawsuit alleges that the Century City, Calif., equity firm Fortress Investment Group, LLC, is the actual owner of each subsidiary named as defendants in the lawsuit, including Mission Commons Retirement Residence.

Jack K. Hanson, Sr. was a resident of Mission Commons Retirement Residence from June 2009 to April of 2011, when he passed away at the facility. Hanson paid $5,500 a month, based on promises of a level of care on the part of Mission Commons that met both California law and the facility's own Admissions Agreement, signed by both parties.

The lawsuit alleges that Mission Commons and its operators woefully failed to actually provide the promised services, which led Hanson, Sr. to suffer significant injuries.

"California's Consumer Legal Remedies Act was put in place to protect consumers and to ensure that they had recourse if they didn't get what they paid for and contracted for," says elder abuse attorney Stephen M. Garcia of the national elder abuse law firm Garcia, Artigliere & Shadrack, headquartered in Long Beach, Calif. "Our lawsuit clearly alleges that the defendants' unlawful, unfair, and deceptive business practices caused Mr. Hanson and other Mission Commons residents actual injuries, as well as monetary harm. It further alleges that the facility is under-funded and understaffed, and, therefore, is unable to provide the care and supervision residents are paying for and have the right to expect under California's laws."

Examples of how Mission Commons did not meet its agreements are numerous. For instance, the admissions agreement represents that the facility's services include "monitoring and observing changes in physical, mental, emotional and social needs" and "notification to the (resident's) family, physician, and other appropriate person/agency of your needs." The lawsuit alleges that the facility did neither of these things.

The facility agreed to provide timely assistance in dressing, grooming, bathing, and with other personal hygiene, assistance with taking medications, and monitoring of food intake or special diets. Again, the lawsuit alleges that Mr. Hanson and other residents at the facility did not receive timely assistance with these services, despite paying more than $5,000 a month!

"Probably the most egregious failure alleged in the complaint is the defendants' plan of increasing business profits at the expense of the residents," says Garcia. "The lawsuit alleges that it was the company's practice to under-staff the facility and that many of the staff that did exist were neither properly trained nor qualified to care for the elders whose lives they were entrusted with."

Garcia points to 66 employee reviews of Holiday Retirement (which includes Mission Commons), on the website Glassdoor. Over and over these reviews talk of under-staffing, staff not being adequately trained and working 50, 60, and even 90 hours a week. They detail a corporate culture dedicated to the bottom line rather than to resident services.

"Our parents and grandparents deserve so much better," says Garcia. "Reading these reviews gives one the impression that – as one employee says – the facility is operated as a used car lot, not as a place entrusted to care for those we love."

If your loved one has suffered elder abuse or nursing home neglect, contact elder abuse attorney Stephen M. Garcia at www.lawgarcia.com or at (800) 281-8515 for a free, no-obligation consultation.

SOURCE Garcia, Artigliere & Shadrack