The National Council on Aging identifies sexual abuse as one of the forms of mistreatment elderly adults frequently encounter in nursing homes. As with other forms of mistreatment, those who abuse the elderly in a sexual manner often believe that the victim’s age, impairments, and other disadvantages will allow them to get away with their behavior.
If you have reason to believe that your loved one has suffered from sexual abuse or other forms of mistreatment while living in a nursing home, call an Aurora sexual abuse lawyer at Pintas & Mullins Law Firm for a free consultation.
Types of Sexual Abuse
Sexual assault comprises many types of actions. All types, however, hold one thing in common: They happen against the victim’s will or without their consent. Sexual assault also covers actions that occur when an individual is under the influence of drugs or alcohol, disabled, or below the age of consent in the state where the assault transpired.
The National Institute of Justice lists the following activities as forms of sexual assault when they happen in the above circumstances:
- Intentionally touching the victim’s genitals, breasts, groin, or anus
- Exposing the victim to exhibitionisms
- Exposing the victim to pornography
- Voyeurism
- Publicly displaying images taken of the victim in a “private context” or without their knowledge
These actions may or may not involve the use of actual force, weapons, threats of force, intimidation, coercion, or pressure.
Rape
Although in some states, sexual assault stops short of attempted rape or rape, other states use the terms interchangeably, and still others consider rape to be a form of sexual assault. In a situation of rape, the victim suffers nonconsensual penetration (vaginal, anal, or oral), either by objects or the perpetrator’s body parts. This type of assault involves physical force or threats of physical harm. Alternatively, the victim is considered a minor or was incapacitated at the time of the assault.
Sexual Abuse May Occur in Nursing Home Negligence Cases
Sexual abuse occurs in nursing homes more often than the average person may realize, according to The National Consumer Voice for Quality Long-Term Care.
Other forms of mistreatment reported in nursing homes may involve:
- Neglect.
- Physical abuse other than sexual abuse.
- Emotional abuse.
- Psychological abuse.
- Financial exploitation.
You should consider that, if you believe your loved one suffers as the victim of sexual abuse, they may also suffer as a victim of these other forms of mistreatment. Before exploring whether your loved one suffered mistreatment in other ways, it may help to learn more about the signs of sexual abuse of elderly adults.
Sexual Abuse Can Have a Severe Impact on Victims
Elderly nursing home residents unable to defend themselves from mistreatment may suffer at the hands of employees or other residents who seek to inflict harm on others. Sexual abuse in a nursing home setting classifies as especially heinous, as it can have unique impacts upon its victims, especially for elderly adults already at risk of other medical conditions.
Victims of sexual abuse may experience:
- Flashbacks, including night terrors.
- Difficulty sleeping that qualifies as insomnia.
- Sexually-transmitted diseases and infections.
- Physical injury to their genital region and rectum.
- Severe depression.
- Disassociation, which may lead to unresponsiveness.
- Suicidal thoughts.
- Mood swings.
- An urge toward self-harm.
- In the case of the elderly, a shortened life span due to the trauma, anxiety, and negative feelings that sexual abuse often causes.
The effects of sexual abuse on your loved one may produce symptoms that you can see directly. These may include:
- The tendency toward depression.
- Your loved one isolating themself from social settings, including group activities that they usually enjoy.
- Apparent signs of fear and anxiety, such as rocking back and forth, tapping their feet incessantly, and urinating without warning or explanation.
- Showing signs of fear toward particular people, including caregivers.
You should investigate any notable changes in your loved one’s personality. If your loved one experienced any form of sexual abuse, then the changes in their patterns of behavior and emotional state may prove significant.
Call our team at Pintas & Mullins Law Firm for a free consultation. We can help, even if you remain unsure about the next steps in investigating any suspicions you have about the nursing home where your loved one may have sustained sexual abuse.
For a free legal consultation with a Sexual Abuse Lawyer serving Aurora, call (800) 794-0444
An Aurora Sexual Abuse Lawyer May Begin Your Loved One’s Case for Compensation
When sexual abuse happens, make sure to remove your loved one from the situation. Often, this means removing them from the environment where the abuse occurred. You should also call law enforcement to report your suspicions, along with any evidence of abuse that you have in your possession. In the case of another nursing home resident abusing your loved one, the nursing home management still failed to secure your loved one’s safety; therefore, they still hold liability for any abuse that occurred in their facility.
Your case may require a civil court hearing to secure any compensation for which your loved one qualifies, as these funds may help with the cost of relocating your loved one. Call a lawyer today to potentially help begin the process of bringing a lawsuit for compensation in civil court.
An Aurora Sexual Abuse Lawyer May Guide You Through the Legal Process
To help your case resolve successfully, an Aurora sexual abuse lawyer may speak with you and your loved one to get firsthand accounts of the suspected abuse and keep you updated on your case. They may then handle the majority of the responsibility for moving your lawsuit along.
Your lawyer may also:
- Investigate who perpetrated the sexual abuse against your loved one.
- Decide whether others besides the abuser, such as administrators at the nursing home, also bear liability for the abuse of your loved one.
- Prove in court that the conditions in the nursing home that allowed for abuse, as well as the actions of the abuser, qualify as negligence for which your loved one should receive compensation.
- Keep you informed of any settlement offers that the defendant or defendants in your case extend to your loved one.
- Complete all the duties necessary to complete your lawsuit.
- Defend your loved one’s rights and dignity as they pursue any awards.
If your loved one’s lawsuit results in a settlement or favorable judgment, they may collect compensation for:
- Pain and suffering they endured as the result of sexual abuse and other forms of mistreatment while in the nursing home.
- The cost of their stay at the nursing home.
- Medical treatments required because of mistreatment, including sexual abuse, while they were in the nursing home.
Aurora Sexual Abuse Lawyer Near Me (800) 794-0444
Call Pintas & Mullins Law Firm for Your Free Case Evaluation
Our clients do not pay anything up front or out of pocket, and we do not shy away from tough cases. Call an Aurora sexual abuse lawyer for a free consultation. Do not wait, as time may factor into your loved one’s safety and their ability to bring legal action for their losses.
Call or text (800) 794-0444 or complete a Free Case Evaluation form
