Hidden camera leads to charges accusing caretaker of assaulting 90-year-old patient
By Joe Brandt | For NJ.com
A caretaker is facing criminal charges after a hidden camera caught her assaulting a 90-year-old woman.
The footage was caught on a tiny surveillance camera obtained by the victim's family through Safe Care Cam, a state program that loans the cameras at no charge to residents who suspect elder abuse by caregivers.
A woman obtained the camera after suspecting that someone was abusing her 90-year-old mother, who is bedridden and nonverbal after suffering a stroke.
The camera was placed in the room at an assisted living facility in Park Ridge. It caught Mitsou Gottheim, 50, of Nanuet, New York, slapping the elderly woman's handing and roughly pushing her head back onto a pillow. The patient was trying to sit up and reach for something.
Relatives turned the footage over to police and Gottheim was charged with simple assault and endangering the welfare of an incompetent person, the state attorney general's office said.
"Our Safe Care Cam program sends a clear message that we are committed to safeguarding our most vulnerable residents from abuse and neglect," said Paul R. Rodríguez, who heads the office's Division of Consumer Affairs. "An undisclosed number of cameras are at work right now across the state, watching over loved ones to ensure they are treated with dignity and care. Caregivers who think they can get away with abusing or neglecting those they are entrusted to look after while no one is looking need to think twice, because a Safe Care Cam may be watching."
The state did not say how many cameras are in use across the state. But once obtained, it is up to the participants to review the footage and decide whether to turn over the footage to law enforcement.
Gottheim is the first person to face police charges based on a video camera from the program.
Anyone who wants to participate in the program can call 973-504-6375 and leave a message. Patients who believe that they have been treated by a licensed health care professional in an inappropriate manner can file an online complaint with the State Division of Consumer Affairs by visiting the website or by calling 1-800-242-5846 (toll free within New Jersey).
Joe Brandt can be reached at jbrandt@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @JBrandt_NJ. Find NJ.com on Facebook.
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