Inset, left to right: Angela Peterson and Sherika Myles (Dorchester County Sheriff’s Office). Background: Coastal Regional Center in Summerville, S.C. (Google Maps).
Two employees at a South Carolina care facility are accused of leaving a vulnerable adult strapped to a toilet for about an hour while the person’s feeding tube leaked, according to state investigators.
Angela Peterson, 46, and Sherika Myles, 41, each face a charge of neglect of a vulnerable adult, according to the South Carolina State Law Enforcement Division, commonly known as SLED. Both women were booked at the Dorchester County Detention Center and later released.
The alleged incident took place May 20 at the Coastal Regional Center in Summerville, South Carolina, roughly 25 miles northwest of Charleston. At the time, Peterson was employed as a registered nurse, while Myles worked as a direct support professional.
The Coastal Regional Center is run by the Office of Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities. Authorities say Peterson and Myles were responsible for providing care to a vulnerable adult at the facility.
According to investigators, the victim had been strapped to a toilet and had a G-tube, or gastrostomy tube, in place. Such tubes are designed to give “direct access” for “supplemental feeding, hydration or medicine.” The tube was leaking, authorities said, and Peterson allegedly knew about the problem.
Warrants reviewed by Law&Crime allege Peterson “wrapped a towel around the G-tube to stop it from leaking,” but did not immediately get it fixed. Instead, investigators say, she “waited until the next shift nurse arrived, an hour later, to receive help fixing the G-tube.” During that time, the victim “had been left strapped to a toilet, with a leaking g-tube for an hour,” the documents state.
Myles, meanwhile, was assigned to care for the victim and check on them “every five minutes,” according to court records. Authorities allege she “failed to do adequately.” The victim had fallen while still strapped to the toilet and was later found “in a squatted position on the floor in front of the toilet, still strapped in,” investigators said.
Officers with SLED investigated the incident, saying they conducted interviews and reviewed surveillance footage corroborating their account.
The South Carolina Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Disabilities (BHDD) — the parent agency of the Office of Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities — said it “is aware of two recent arrests following an allegation of neglect at Coastal Regional Center,” per regional CBS affiliate WCSC.
“BHDD requested the investigation and is working closely with the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division (SLED),” the statement added. “Because this is an active case, any requests for information or updates should be made directly to SLED. As always, BHDD takes the safety of individuals in our care with the utmost seriousness and will continue to cooperate fully with law enforcement.”
The post Facility workers left vulnerable adult strapped to a toilet for an hour with a leaking feeding tube, nurse waited until the next employee to arrive before helping: Police first appeared on Law & Crime.
