News
Two Indicted In Death Of Disabled Woman
By Ryan Fennell
RED BANK - Two women who were responsible for the care of a developmentally disabled woman, have been named in a 17-count indictment in connection with the alleged abuse, neglect, and starvation death of 29-year old Tara O'Leary.
Bridget Grimes, 52, and Debra Sloan, 55, were named in the indictment handed down in a Hunterdon County court last Friday.
Grimes, O'Leary's caseworker assigned to her by the State Division of Developmental Disabilities, was charged with six counts of official misconduct for her role in O'Leary's treatment.
Sloan's charges include second-degree aggravated assault, third-degree assault of a developmentally disabled person, and criminal restraint.
O'Leary was born with multiple disabilities and spent the last ten years of her life in the Bloomsbury sponsor-home in the care of Sloan.
There are currently 1,200 sponsor-homes in New Jersey. Sponsors are licensed by the state and paid to care for up to three individuals.
O'Leary died in November 2008 at the age of 29, weighing only 43 pounds.
In the months leading up to her death, O'Leary's cousin, Eileen Devlin of Little Silver, contacted legislators of New Jersey's 12th District because of her suspicions that Grimes and Sloan were mistreating O'Leary.
After O'Leary's death and an investigation surrounding the circumstances of her death, State Senator Jennifer Beck (R-12), Assemblyman Declan O'Scanlon (R-12) and Assemblywoman Caroline Casagrande (R-12) introduced legislation known as "Tara's Law" which is designed to protect developmentally disabled individuals who are placed in community-care residences from physical, verbal, and psychological abuse as well as neglect, exploitation, and abandonment.
"This (indictment) is a validation of the work we have done to get to the bottom of what really happened to Tara," Beck said. "Tara's Law is the first step in working to increase the protections of our most vulnerable citizens, and as this court case continues, we will find out what other changes need to be made in the system. Tara's death is an unspeakable tragedy, and we will continue to make sure it never happens again."
"This is the first step in bringing justice to Tara and to making sure that no more of our most vulnerable citizens are treated with such cruelty and disregard," said Casagrande. "This indictment is proof of the seriousness of these crimes and of the true heinousness of Tara's treatment. With Tara's Law we can protect others from this type of maltreatment."
"The fight is not over but this is an encouraging step that Tara's death will not be swept under the rug," O'Scanlon said. "These are serious charges being levied against these two women, and we will watch closely as this case moves forward. For now, I hope Tara's family can find a modicum of peace in the knowledge that people are listening to their story and care about what happened to Tara."
According to Devlin, who ultimately became O'Leary's legal guardian only to have to make the decision to remove her from life support, the family was denied visitation and contact with O'Leary for several years.
When Tara O'Leary's father Kevin O'Leary, died in 2005 he left guardianship to Jane O'Leary, Tara's stepmother. However, O'Leary's stepmother never pursued guardianship.
According to Devlin, she and other family members were being given contradictory information from the caseworker and the ARC (Association of Retarded Citizens).
The legislation is designed to provide families with monthly reports regarding their loved ones as well as set up a 24-hour hotline to report inconsistencies such as those Devlin received.
The legislation has several outlets for families to utilize because in many cases sponsor homes care for more than one patient, as was the situation in O'Leary's case.
"It is critical and may have ultimately helped Tara because there were other people in this house who were also being abused who did have contact with their family," O'Scanlon said.
"It's very likely that these (monthly) reports, had they been submitted, the abuse would have been known much earlier and Tara would have been helped as well. We're looking to help everyone in this system with these cross-benefits."
