Several Louisiana nursing homes are facing possible criminal charges for not evacuating residents before Hurricane Katrina hit.
A total of 13 nursing homes are under criminal investigation for failing to move residents prior to Katrina making landfall on Aug. 29. This inaction may have contributed to the deaths of more than 100 people in Louisiana, according to Charles Foti, Louisiana’s attorney general.
Last weekend, authorities uncovered yet another body at the St. Bernard Parish nursing home where 34 residents died as a result of the aftermath of the hurricane. Owners Mable and Salvador Mangano Sr. were charged with negligent homicide. The death toll at St. Rita’s nursing home is now 35.
While state law requires nursing homes to evacuate, according to the attorney general, the Manganos’ attorney insists that parish officials never issued a mandatory evacuation order and that his clients were reluctant to evacuate because of the risk to the residents.
