Attorney General Peter F. Kilmartin announced that Vanessa Theodore (age 33), of Cranston, pleaded nolo contendere yesterday before Superior Court Justice Joseph Montalbano to one count of patient abuse and two counts of patient mistreatment. Under the terms of the plea agreement, Theodore was sentenced to a total of three years, with three months to serve at the ACI, nine months to serve on home confinement, and the remainder suspended with probation. In a separate case, Theodore also pleaded nolo contendere to one count of a fraudulent check over $1,500 for which she was sentenced to one year suspended with probation, to run concurrent with the other sentence.
Had the case proceeded to trial, the State was prepared to prove that in May 2015, Theodore, who was employed as a Direct Support Professional at the Perspectives Group Home in East Greenwich, physically assaulted and improperly restrained a physically and mentally disabled female. Through the course of the investigation, videos were obtained that showed the abuse.
Another employee of the group home reported the abuse to supervisors, who in turn reported the abuse to the Medicaid Fraud Control and Patient Abuse Unit at the Office of Attorney General.
"The victim relied on the defendant to help her with the most basic needs, and instead of treating her with care and compassion, the defendant physically abused the woman," said Attorney General Peter Kilmartin. "No matter their physical or mental limitations, every person deserves to be properly cared for and treated with dignity and respect."
The case was investigated by Paul San Souci, an investigator with the Office of Attorney General, and prosecuted by Special Assistant Attorney General Genevieve Allaire-Johnson.