Two employees at a support facility in South Carolina were arrested after they allegedly left a vulnerable adult strapped to a toilet with a leaking feeding tube for more than an hour without helping them.
The South Carolina State Law Enforcement Division confirmed that Angela Peterson and Sherika Myles have been charged with neglect of a vulnerable adult following the incident. Peterson, 46, and Myles, 41, were booked into the Dorchester County Detention Center, and they have since been released after posting bond.
Peterson was working as a registered nurse at the Coastal Regional Center in Summerville, South Carolina, at the time of the incident, while Myles was employed as a direct support professional.
Both Peterson and Myles had been tasked to take care of a vulnerable adult on May 20, according to the arrest affidavit viewed by Us.
One of the defendants was accused of strapping the victim to a toilet with a G-tube, which is also known as a gastrostomy tube and is designed to help with supplemental feeding, hydration or giving medicine to the patients.
However, the tube started to leak, and Peterson allegedly did nothing about it despite knowing that there was an issue with it.
Peterson eventually “wrapped a towel around the G-tube to stop it from leaking” and then allegedly “waited until the next shift nurse arrived, an hour later, to receive help fixing the G-tube,” according to the documents. The victim was then “left strapped to a toilet, with a leaking G-tube for an hour.”
Myles was assigned to care for the victim and check on them “every five minutes,” which she “failed to do adequately,” per the documents.
At one point, the victim fell while they were strapped to the toilet. Authorities said they were then found “in a squatted position on the floor in front of the toilet” and were “still strapped in.”
Authorities launched an investigation into the matter, in which they conducted interviews and reviewed surveillance footage that corroborated the victim’s account of events.
Following the incident, the South Carolina Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Disabilities issued a statement saying it was “aware of two recent arrests following an allegation of neglect at Coastal Regional Center,” according to WCSC.
“BHDD requested the investigation and is working closely with the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division (SLED),” the statement continued. “Because this is an active case, any requests for information or updates should be made directly to SLED. As always, BHDD takes the safety of individuals in our care with the utmost seriousness and will continue to cooperate fully with law enforcement.”
It’s not currently clear whether Peterson or Myles have entered pleas or retained legal counsel following their arrests. The South Carolina State Law Enforcement Division did not immediately respond to Us’ request for comment regarding the case.
