According to state prosecutors, a Louisiana nursing assistant caused the death of a patient while attempting solo operation of a hydraulic lift to transfer the individual from a chair to her bed. The patient reportedly “slipped out the side of the sling, landing on the feet of the lift,” resulting in blunt force injuries, as stated by the state’s attorney general.

“These cases are very difficult,” explained State Attorney General Liz Murrill in a statement last week, announcing the indictment of Diamond Johnson, a former certified nursing assistant at the Jefferson Manor Nursing and Rehabilitation Center in Baton Rouge.

Johnson faces a negligent homicide charge and was employed at the facility in June 2024 when she was responsible for the nursing home patient, whose identity has not been disclosed publicly.

“She operated a hydraulic lift by herself,” a press release from Murrill’s office states. “Johnson used the lift to transfer the patient from a chair to her bed,” it claims. “During the lifting process, the patient slipped out the side of the sling, landing on the lift’s feet. Approximately 40 minutes after the fall, the patient became unresponsive. Resuscitation efforts were unsuccessful.”

An autopsy followed the incident, and the medical examiner concluded that the patient “passed away due to complications of blunt force injuries from falling from a patient lift at the nursing home,” according to Murrill’s office.

A grand jury proceeding took place on Oct. 2, in which criminality and charges were weighed. It resulted in an indictment of Johnson and she was booked into the East Baton Rouge Parish Prison.

Murrill’s Medicaid Fraud Control Unit probed the former nursing assistant and the alleged homicide.

“My job as attorney general is to protect the citizens of this state; especially those who can’t protect themselves,” Murrill said in her statement. “As to the facts of this case, the grand jury felt, as we did, that Ms. Johnson was negligent in the care she provided to the victim, who unfortunately lost her life as a result of that negligence.”

Jefferson Manor describes itself online as a facility that is “passionate about its mission to improve quality of life” for its residents.

“We believe that all our residents deserve to be treated with respect and dignity,” a description says on its website. “Jefferson Manor realizes that each of our residents has individual needs and we specialize in providing the care necessary to fulfill these needs.”

The center did not respond to Law&Crime’s requests for comment on Monday.