As more registered sex offenders enter nursing homes as residents, facilities are struggling with the difficult problem of providing care to all those who need it while keeping potentially dangerous residents from doing harm.
Here are five things the I-Team uncovered in this investigation:
1. What homes do sex offenders live in?: We found 136 sex offenders living in 43 nursing homes across the state, including 18 in one Columbus home. Get more details on the homes and who lives in them with our searchable database.
2. Repeat offenders moved to new homes: At least two individuals we profiled were admitted to Ohio nursing homes despite past convictions for sexual assault of a resident or staff member.
3. Few facilities take sex offenders: Sex offenders make up a small fraction of the estimated 84,000 nursing home residents in 940 homes in Ohio. But as their numbers grow, the challenges become greater because the number of facilities willing to take them remains small.
We talked to a convicted rapist who said he’s had few options to get the care he needs.
4. State registry is missing critical information: A 2014 law requires nursing homes and long-term care facilities to check the state sex offender registry before admitting a new patient. They also must alert other residents and their guardians if an offender is moving in, and create and share a care plan for that individual.
But our examination of the nursing home residents on Ohio's sex offender registry shows it is missing critical information on some offenders, including the type of crime committed and other details that would better help nursing homes assess the potential risk of admitting that person.
5. Sex offenders allowed to live near schools: Registered sex offenders in Ohio aren't supposed to live within 1,000 feet of a school or daycare center, but the I-Team found six nursing homes currently housing offenders that were within or very close to that limit.
That includes a Springfield nursing home resident who has legally lived near Lagonda Elementary School for two years despite convictions for touching young girls, including a 10-year-old.
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