Staff allows sexual assault of mom with dementia, saying she 'consented,' lawsuit says

A man is suing an assisted living facility, saying staff didn’t protect his mother, who has dementia, from two sexual assaults by a “dangerous” resident — and considered the assaults to be consensual.

Pamela Harney needed full-time assistance at Brookdale Senior Living Foundation in Federal Way, Washington, and can’t give consent due to her “diminished mental capacity,” according to a lawsuit filed by her son, Ryan Harney.

Pamela Harney also uses a wheelchair and is unable to walk after she was injured at another heath care facility, according to a complaint dated Sept. 16.

The first sexual assault at Brookdale was captured on the facility’s surveillance footage, which showed a male resident wheeling Pamela Harney into another resident’s room and assaulting her on May 13, 2023, according to a complaint dated Sept. 16.

After Brookdale reviewed the footage, staff reported to the Washington Department of Social and Health Services that the 81-year-old “seemed to be ‘enjoying’ herself during the sexual assault,” the complaint says.

The director of the facility is accused of telling a DSHS investigator “the event was caught on video and proves the incident was mutual and not forced by either resident.”

The male resident was then put on one-to-one monitoring at Brookdale, the complaint says.

However, the facility’s staff allowed him to sexually assault Pamela Harney again, a few days later on May 19, 2023, according to the complaint.

Similar to the first incident, the resident wheeled Pamela Harney in another room and assaulted her, the complaint says.

Brookdale, again, reported that Pamela Harney “consented” after reviewing the incident, according to the complaint.

Ryan Harney, her son, is suing Brookdale for abuse against a vulnerable adult, negligence and sex and disability discrimination.

“(Pamela Harney’s) status as a disabled woman was a driving force of and a substantial factor in the sexual abuse she endured, and that ‘Brookdale’ allowed to occur,” the complaint says.

A Brookdale spokesperson declined to comment on the litigation in a statement to McClatchy News on Sept. 19.

“At Brookdale Foundation House, providing quality care and services to promote the health and wellbeing of our residents is our priority,” the spokesperson said.

Ryan Harney told the Federal Way Mirror that his mother was moved to a memory care facility after she experienced cognitive decline and could no longer care for herself on her own.

He considers her cognitive ability to be similar to a toddler’s, and said that Brookdale staff knew of her cognitive level when the facility claimed she consented to the sexual assaults, according to the Federal Way Mirror.

She was “fully dependent” on Brookdale’s staff, the complaint says.

“They called my mom a promiscuous lady and that she seemed to be enjoying being sexually assaulted from the video that they witnessed,” Harney told the Federal Way Mirror. “My jaw hit the floor. I had to ask them again to repeat themselves because I couldn’t believe what I heard. My mom couldn’t at any point in time, when she was at Brookdale, be able to make a rational decision or give consent, let alone know what my name is.”

After the first assault, Brookdale failed to consistently monitor the resident accused of sexually assaulting Pamela Harney, Evergreen Personal Injury Counsel, which is representing the case, said in a Sep. 16 news release.

“We trust that the facilities taking care of vulnerable adults will treat them with dignity, respect, and will protect them from sexual abuse, physical abuse, harm, and neglect. Brookdale allowed these sexual assaults to occur under their watch,” the firm’s release said.

The DSHS investigated the reported sexual assaults and concluded no laws were violated, KING-TV reported.

McClatchy News reached out to the Washington Department of Social and Health Services for clarification on its decision and is awaiting response.

Ryan Harney told the TV station that his 81-year-old mother is now living at a different facility.

With his lawsuit, he is demanding a jury trial and seeks special and general damages as compensation for what happened to his mother.

“The Harney family alongside the attorneys at Evergreen Personal Injury Counsel have filed this vulnerable adult lawsuit to ensure that this never happens to another resident at Brookdale again,” the release said.

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