COWLEY COUNTY —Law enforcement authorities are investigating a case of alleged abuse of a dependent adult at a nursing home in Cowley County.
On December 16, police were dispatched for a report of a dependent adult who allegedly had been neglected in Medicalodges of Arkansas City, 203 E. Osage Avenue, according to a media release from police.
Officers were assisted by Medicalodges staff, who had conducted interviews of employees. Those employees found to be responsible for the abuse were separated from employment at the nursing home.
Through the course of the investigation, it was learned that a resident had suffered weight loss, and is dependent upon a feeding tube for feedings and medications, according to Police Chief Dan Ward.
Police also identified 56-year-old Kathy Lynne Hale as a suspect in the case. She was out of state during the initial investigation, but police applied for and were granted a warrant for her arrest upon her return to Kansas.
When Hale eventually returned to her residence in January, she was contacted and brought to the Arkansas City Police Department for questioning. She later was taken into custody without incident on a requested charge of felony mistreatment of a dependent adult (deprivation of treatment).
She was booked into the Cowley County Jail in Winfield in lieu of $15,000 bond through Cowley County District Court in Arkansas City.
The case has been forwarded to the Cowley County Attorney’s Office for the consideration of additional charges.