BISMARCK, N.D. (KXNET) — Attorney General Drew Wrigley announced on Tuesday that the Honorable Jay Schmitz sentenced Gracious Weah to serve one year and one day in jail.
According to a news release, the jury found Weah guilty of Aggravated Assault Causing Permanent Impairment and Reckless Endangerment.
Weah’s actions caused severe injury to a resident of the Sheyenne Care Center in Valley City and did not report the injury.
Judge Schmitz ordered that Weah should complete three years of supervised probation and that she be banned from working in care settings during those three years.
The case was investigated and prosecuted by the Medicaid Fraud Control Unit with the assistance of the Valley City Police Department.
The Unit reported the sentence to the Office of Inspector General of the United States Department of Health and Human Services, and Weah will be removed from receiving payment from any Federal healthcare program such as Medicaid or Medicare and will last at least five years.
The removal successfully stops Weah from working with patients in the healthcare industry.
Attorney General Wrigley said, “This sentence serves the dual purpose of holding the offender accountable for her heartless conduct and protecting the citizens of North Dakota. The Attorney General’s Office is committed to protecting vulnerable adults receiving services in long-term care settings, and we are asking the legislature for additional personnel so we can further elevate these priority investigations and prosecutions.”
