Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: WEDNESDAY, June 13, 1990 TAG: 9006130373
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: B-1 EDITION: STATE
SOURCE: KEVIN KITTREDGE SHENANDOAH VALLEY BUREAU
DATELINE: NATURAL BRIDGE LENGTH: Short
Hannah Lee Williams, 50, froze to death after wandering away from The Manor of Natural Bridge on Dec. 23. Williams, who had Alzheimer's disease, was reported missing by staffers the next morning. She was found dead several hundred feet from the home after an eight-hour search.
Manor officials said a staffer had made a mistake by assuming Williams had gone home for Christmas with her family.
The wrongful-death suit filed in Rockbridge County Circuit Court charges the home was negligent, failing to comply with state regulations on management personnel, staffing and protection of residents. It charges that the home showed "recklessness evincing a conscious disregard for the safety of its residents, including Hannah Lee Williams."
The suit, filed by Joseph W. Williams Sr., seeks a $1 million judgment as well as punitive damages of $100,000.
Manor administrator JoAnne King said Tuesday that the incident was the result of "a mistake" on the part of an employee, whom she declined to identify.
"She just didn't do what she was supposed to do," King said of the employee. "Before we even found the body, she was terminated. . . . If she had done what the procedures called for, it would have been a different ending."
The lawsuit asks for a trial by jury. A court date has not been set.
by CNB