Five of the seven deaths at the warehouse shelter have been thought-about storm-related, state well being officers mentioned. In whole, greater than 800 residents have been taken to the ability forward of the storm.
A joint investigation by the lawyer normal’s Medicaid Fraud Control Unit (MFCU) and the Louisiana Bureau of Investigations (LBI) “revealed Dean refused to move his residents out of the warehouse following Hurricane Ida, billed Medicaid for dates his residents were not receiving proper care, and engaged in conduct intended to intimidate or obstruct public health officials and law enforcement,” the AG’s information launch mentioned.
Dean’s lawyer, John McClindon, advised NCS Wednesday Dean plans to plead not responsible to all charges he is dealing with and mentioned Dean’s psychological well being will issue into the case.
“I don’t think it’s any secret that Bob’s mental health is going to be an issue in this case,” McClindon mentioned. “Bob clearly has some cognitive impairments and did on the day of this incident.”
McClindon mentioned Landry knowledgeable him of an arrest warrant for Dean Monday and his shopper flew from Georgia to self-surrender. He made an preliminary courtroom look in Louisiana Wednesday and was launched on $350,000 bond, McClindon mentioned.
McClindon referred to as the charges “very defensible” and mentioned “the evidence will bear out eventually.”
Residents saved in ‘unsafe, unsanitary, and unhealthy’ situations, officers mentioned
The nursing dwelling residents have been taken to the warehouse in Independence, about 57 miles east of Baton Rouge, forward of Hurricane Ida’s landfall on August 29.
The state well being division mentioned it quickly began to listen to about deteriorating situations at the warehouse.
“Let’s be clear; there is no emergency-preparedness plan that allows for residents to be kept in such an unsafe, unsanitary, and unhealthy condition,” Stephen Russo, director of authorized, audit and regulatory affairs for the well being division, mentioned last year. “The lack of adequate care for these residents is inhumane, and goes against the rules, regulations, and applicable statutes.”
The seven services concerned had their licenses revoked and can’t repatriate or admit residents, officers mentioned at the time. The homes additionally had their Medicaid supplier agreements terminated, the well being division mentioned.
The Attorney General’s Office investigation is ongoing and extra authorized motion could also be filed sooner or later, the Wednesday launch mentioned.
The subsequent courtroom date for Dean has not been set, however McClindon mentioned it is going to almost certainly occur within the subsequent 60 days.
NCS’s Keith Allen, Rebekah Riess, Jason Hanna, Steve Almasy and Deanna Hackney contributed to this report.