Inset: Julie Ann Cross (Casper Police Dept.). Background: The NOWCAP facility in Wyoming where Cross allegedly tied a resident to their bed (Google Maps).
A 50-year-old nursing home worker in Wyoming has been accused of mistreating a patient by allegedly tying the patient’s head to the bed with a silk scarf to restrict movement.
Julie Ann Cross faces charges including one count of felony intentional abuse, neglect, or abandonment of a vulnerable adult, along with one count of misdemeanor false imprisonment.
In a recent appearance at the Natrona County District Court, Cross entered a plea of not guilty to the accusations, as reported by Cowboy State Daily. Judge Catherine Wilking granted her release on a $5,000 personal recognizance bond.
The alleged incident occurred in the early hours of July 14 at a Nowcap residential facility on North Walsh Avenue. Officers from the Casper Police Department responded to an emergency call after a co-worker arrived for a morning shift and found a 53-year-old woman restrained in bed, unable to move her head.
The morning shift manager noticed the situation when attempting to reposition the resident and discovered a blue scarf securing her hair to the bed. According to Oil City News, a colleague documented the scene with photos, noting that it took about five minutes to untie the knot.
As the employees were helping the resident, Cross, who was the sole staff member responsible for the resident during the night shift, reportedly entered the room. She allegedly tried to push a co-worker and attempted to seize the scarf.
When one of the co-workers asked Cross why she had tied the resident’s head down, Cross allegedly replied, “It was to keep [the resident] from moving,” Cowboy State Daily reported, citing a probable cause affidavit. She also allegedly commented that the resident’s hair was “matted and smelt.”
Before leaving the room, Cross reportedly asked if the resident’s hair had become “tangled again on her bed,” claiming it had been “getting tangled throughout the night.”
In an interview with police the following day, Cross allegedly claimed she only used the scarf to tie the resident’s hair into a ponytail, but noted that when she came back to check on the patient later, the scarf had “fallen and wrapped around the bed.”
“Morning staff came in and she told them about the scarf and how it had gotten wrapped around the corner of the bed,” Cross told police, per the affidavit. “She believes that (the patient) was tossing her head side-to-side and the scarf got wrapped around again.”
During Thursday’s hearing, Cross confirmed that she was let go from the facility shortly after the incident, Oil City News reported.
