Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: TUESDAY, October 18, 1994 TAG: 9410180098
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: C3 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: LAURENCE HAMMACK STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
Harriet Martin was convicted of the charge in May, but appealed to Roanoke Circuit Court. As part of an agreement reached Monday, she pleaded guilty to assault and battery in exchange for prosecutors' dropping a second charge of neglecting an incapacitated adult, according to Chief Assistant Commonwealth's Attorney Betty Jo Anthony.
Martin had been convicted of both charges at the May hearing in General District Court and was sentenced to 12 months in jail.
According to earlier testimony, Martin kicked and screamed at 88-year-old Dottie Cash on the edge of Cove Road - as passing motorists watched - after the elderly woman had wandered away from the adult home May 11.
Several motorists stopped to help Cash and later testified against Martin.
Martin, 42, had testified that she was only trying to get Cash out of the road and back to safety. While admitting that she got a "little loud," Martin denied kicking the woman - saying she was only trying to use her foot to push her out of the roadway.
At the time of the incident, Martin had been working for about three weeks at an adult home run by Marcia Hancock. Because the home has fewer than four residents, it is not required to be licensed.
Several years ago, Hancock was cited for having too many residents in the home, plus other violations that included unnecessary use of a restraint vest on one resident. A Roanoke County judge fined her $5,000 for the violations in 1992.
Cash, who suffers from Alzheimer's disease and was not able to testify about what happened to her, was not seriously injured in the incident.
by CNB