94-Year-Old Woman Arrested

Theodora Garreau, 94, a resident of Westminster Commons, a nursing home located at 560 St. Charles Ave, NE Atlanta, Ga. was arrested by the police on the charge that she assaulted a fellow resident with a telephone. Her relatives say that not only was she arrested but she was taken to Grady Memorial Hospital where she was shackled to a bed.

Theodora's daughter, Fran Daniel, said her mother, who suffers from dementia, was charged with assaulting her roommate. The police report states that Garreau threw a phone at her roommate, causing a small cut to the roommate's lip. Jeff Andrews, the administrator for Wellington Healthcare which owns Wellington Commons Nursing Home, told WSB-TV Channel 2 that Garreau and the roommate were involved in a physical altercation and had to be separated by a nurse, adding that Garreau was the aggressor.

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According to Fran Daniel, the nursing home reacted in an unprofessional manner and should have resolved the incident without having to call the police.

“She had meds to be sedated. They could have restrained her safely and taken care of the issue in-house,” said Daniel. "I really don't understand how she can be charged with battery.”

Daniel said she isn't happy that her mother was also allegedly shackled to a bed while she was under arrest at Grady and has hired an attorney, Robert Kaiden.

The nursing home claims they had no choice in the matter. They asked the roommate's family if they wanted to press charges and that's when police were called. The officers initially cited Garreau with disorderly conduct but later upgraded the charge to simple battery. The police have declined to make any comments on the case.

Attorney Robert Kaiden insisted Garreau, who weighs about 80 pounds and has arthritis, did not hurt the other woman. He plans to fight the charges and is considering a civil suit against the nursing home.

“They violated her patients’ bill of rights,” Kaiden said. “You’d think they would have some sort of standard operating procedure to handle this in a different way.”

“She didn't throw a phone at anybody. She doesn't recall throwing a phone at anybody,” he said, "calling the police was a drastic measure. I think it's borderline abuse. I think they have abused this woman.”

Theodora Garreau was released on bond. She is no longer staying at Westminster Commons. Her family is searching for another nursing home.

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