Dangerous conditions at state psychiatric hospitals persisted because high-ranking officials at the state’s public defender’s office delayed filing lawsuits and reaching settlements on behalf of patients, an explosive lawsuit against the state alleges.
As the case dragged on, two patients died in “preventable deaths” and many others were assaulted at the understaffed and violent Greystone Park Psychiatric Hospital, the suit said.
Nora Locke, a former deputy public defender in the Mental Health Advocacy Division, said her former boss, Director Carl Herman, discouraged her from filing lawsuits on behalf of Greystone Park psychiatric patients, stalled settlement negotiations, and forced her to file lawsuits. He accused her of ordering him not to wake her up. Settlement terms were reached two years later.
Locke’s complaint alleges that while public defenders successfully fought publicly for significant changes at Morris County’s Greystone Park Psychiatric Hospital in 2020, there was a tense environment in private. It is described what happened. The settlement requires the state to limit the number of patients to 450 patients, the department said. It would keep hospitals stocked with ambulances, hire more psychiatrists and establish an advisory group to monitor hospitals for 10 years.
Locke’s lawsuit was filed in late January against the Public Defender’s Office, then-Public Defender Joseph Cracola, and Herman, alleging that Locke was demoted and reassigned because of a conflict with Herman over the case. claims. Locke is suing for reinstatement, back pay for emotional distress and punitive damages. She also accused the state of discrimination for not allowing her to work remotely for 60 days before her gradual return after taking leave as prescribed by her doctor due to her mental health crisis. They accused him of violating the ban.
Mr. Locke’s attorney, Bruce D. Nimenski, of Lake Hopatcong, said the lawsuit provides “a window into the state’s failure to protect patients at the New Jersey State Psychiatric Hospital.”
“And, just as importantly, this case provides a whistleblower with the ability to expose the state’s failure to provide adequate and safe patient care or to improve conditions in the state’s hospitals. “It exposes the state’s consistent message that you risk being punished,” he said.
Assistant Public Defender Fletcher C. Duddy told New Jersey Advance Media that his office would not comment on Locke’s allegations “other than to say that the office will contest the allegations in New Jersey Superior Court.” he said.
Locke’s lawsuit says that prior to the Greystone incident, Herman encouraged his team to investigate abuse and neglect and pursue legal action on behalf of thousands of mentally ill people.
“In this case, however, Defendant Herman’s actions were in no way routine or immediate,” the complaint states. “(He) told the plaintiff that the hospital was run by the state of New Jersey, not a private organization, and that ‘the politics are complicated and we have reported this matter to (Public Defender Joseph) Cracola for further direction. I’ll wait.” If you decide to shoot the king, you better not miss.”
Locke said Herman cited pressure from other state agencies, including the Attorney General’s Office, which represents state agencies in lawsuits, and the Department of Health, which oversees the state’s four public psychiatric hospitals. It alleges that it influenced Mr. Herman’s judgment and actions. Locke’s lawsuit said the end is beginning.
Work on the case began in 2017, during the final year of Gov. Chris Christie’s second term, and continued well into Gov. Phil Murphy’s administration.
In mid-2017, Greystone Park Psychiatric Hospital became dangerously overcrowded following Christie’s decision to close three other state facilities for people with mental illness and developmental disabilities. Fights and assaults with injuries were common. Locke’s lawsuit alleges that more than 20 doctors, senior managers, and other Greystone employees have complained to the public defender’s office about the hospital’s “artificial dehumanization” caused by “unprecedented mismanagement.” He has petitioned for legal action to be taken to end the crisis.
In Locke’s lawsuit, Greystone officials said that unless the public defender “immediately intervenes legally to protect patients from the dangerous and life-threatening conditions that exist within the hospital, it is certain that many more people will die.” You will die,” he warned.
However, the public defender did not file the class action lawsuit until December 2018. Mr. Herman first withheld permission to proceed with the lawsuit, offered to write the complaint himself, but never completed it, and then turned to the North Brunswick-based Wolf Law Firm. Mr. Locke’s lawsuit states as co-counsel:
Locke’s lawsuit alleges that in addition to issues such as violence, overcrowding, and lack of care, Locke’s team is also concerned about unaccounted for $18 million in state funds earmarked for building improvements needed to keep patients safe. He also revealed information that suggests something like this. But at Mr. Herman’s urging, the suit did not mention the missing money, according to the complaint.
The following month, in January 2019, Herman surprised Locke and his team by announcing that he was working on a settlement with the state. He allegedly instructed them to stop speaking to witnesses or seeking information to pursue the case.
It is not uncommon for attorneys to continue investigating and building a case until an actual settlement is completed.
“(Herrmann) could not and did not specify a single term as to what the terms of the settlement would be. When asked by the team what the terms of the settlement would be, He simply responded, “Don’t worry, it’s resolved,”” Locke’s lawsuit states.
Deputy Public Defender Rihua Xu told Locke that he would be acting unethically if he complied with instructions to stop gathering information knowing that patients were not safe in the hospital. Locke told him to keep his job, according to the complaint.
The two sides settled the lawsuit in November 2020.
The health department also hired a consultant to serve as Greystone’s CEO. Thomas Rosamilia vice president of behavioral health at Bergen Regional Medical Center in Paramus; His 2022 contract pays him $254,800 over six months. He will remain as CEO.
According to Locke’s complaint, at least two patients died, one patient was sexually assaulted, and dozens of other incidents of violence were reported during and after the settlement was negotiated.
December 31, 2019: Shamil Segura, a 25-year-old patient whose one-on-one supervision was terminated that day, was stabbed to death by another man who lived in the same ward. The North Brunswick-based Wolfe Law Firm then sent a letter to U.S. District Judge Esther Salas asking for a halt to the settlement negotiations, saying they appeared to be going nowhere.
In April 2021, five months after the settlement, the public defender’s office announced that a patient who required special diets and supervision during mealtimes was left unattended and choked on hamburgers and chicken nuggets. Herman said in an interview with New Jersey Advance Media three years ago that the man’s death was “completely avoidable.”
But Locke’s complaint alleges that when she and her team tried to take action to force a settlement, Herman sent a very different message: “Stand back.”
“Even though the defendant sent 1,227 documents to defendant Herman, including witness accounts and hospital business records, proving that approximately 56 violent incidents occurred between March and April 2021, the defendant agreed to a settlement agreement. Herman was adamant to his team that the incident could or could have been prevented if he had followed the instructions.The complaint says he did not have “time” to “stand back” and review the documents. …The incident is said to be over.
In April 2021, Locke, Assistant Public Defenders Shu and Eric Zarraga, and co-counsels Lisa Considine and David DiSabato from the Wolf firm filed a complaint accusing Herman of “illegal and unethical” conduct with his superiors. The case was submitted to the public defender, Cracola. Enforcement during and after settlement negotiations.
“This complaint was made in accordance with Mr. Herman’s latest directive that no action be taken to enforce the terms of the settlement agreement,” according to the letter obtained by NJ Advance Media.
During a virtual meeting to discuss the complaint in May 2021, Cracola said “he would have handled things the same way” and viewed the dispute simply as a “disagreement in litigation strategy,” according to the complaint. added.
No one would comment on the outcome of the complaint, which Mr. Cracola referred to the New Jersey State Bar Association’s Office of Lawyer Ethics. The results of the investigation will be confidential unless an attorney is authorized to do so. Mr. Considine and Mr. DiSabato, who have since formed their own law firm, did not respond to requests for comment.
Locke’s lawsuit raises questions about hospital safety nearly three years after it was settled.
Members of the advisory committee overseeing the state’s compliance with settlement requirements, which include hiring more psychiatrists and improving access to emergency care, said the terms of the settlement are being enforced.
“I am not aware of any of the allegations in the lawsuit, but as a member of the Litigation Settlement Oversight Committee, we have never had our work impeded or obstructed by anyone in the public defender’s office. “I know it’s Greystone or the Department of Health,” said Robert Davison, president and CEO of the nonprofit Essex County and Morris County Mental Health Association, which has state contracts to provide outpatient mental health treatment. he said.
“The committee has been very proactive in ensuring that the terms of the settlement are followed and complied with,” Davison added. “Our first president, Anne Portas, was an absolute champion in advocating for patients and demanding that the terms of settlements be met, and our current president, Michelle Borden, is more committed and effective than ever in those efforts. The committee as a whole takes this issue very seriously.”
Duddy, the assistant public defender, said Greystone Hospital is now better and safer.
“Patient numbers have decreased, staffing has increased, corrective actions have been taken to address safety hazards, and acute care protocols are in place with code carts and upgraded on-site ambulance and paramedic staff. Serious violent incidents occurred. They have decreased,” Duddy told NJ Advance Media in an email. “While there are still improvements to be made, the problems that have plagued the hospital for many years are now being corrected.”
This is the second lawsuit filed within the last month involving Greystone. Disability Rights New Jersey, a legal advocacy group, sued the Murphy administration, accusing it of running the state’s public psychiatric hospitals like prisons. There, patients are sexually and physically assaulted, denied necessities like water, and kept in the hospital for months or even years beyond their discharge date. .
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Susan K. Livio may reach [email protected]. Follow her on Twitter @SusanKLivio.
