Nathan Sutherland was arrested after Phoenix police matched his DNA to that of a baby born to a patient at Hacienda Healthcare. PHOENIX — Nathan Sutherland is being held in jail on $500,000 cash bond after Phoenix police arrested him for the sexual assault of an incapacitated patient of Hacienda Healthcare. Phoenix police say the 36-year-old is the father of a baby born to the patient who has serious intellectual disabilities. Sutherland worked at the Hacienda Healthcare facility since 2012. The facility confirmed that his last shift was Jan. 20. State records tell us Sutherland was a licensed practical nurse for a decade in Arizona. He had no complaints with the state nursing board. His record is clean, save for only a traffic ticket. A web search shows Sutherland is also a Christian rapper. According to a biography on a webpage promoting his music, Sutherland and his sister were adopted from Haiti. In Sutherland’s initial court appearance Wednesday, his lawyer said Sutherland has been in Arizona since 1993. In 2007, Sutherland tried to start a charitable organization to help with the homeless and developmentally disabled, according to documents from the Arizona Corporation Commission. There's no evidence that the organization went anywhere. Phoenix Police Chief Jeri Williams said speaking to the media Wednesday that Sutherland was responsible for providing care to the victim at Hacienda Healthcare at the time she would have conceived a child and at the time of the birth. Court documents show that Sutherland's wife filed for divorce after six years of marriage on Dec. 5, 2018—just weeks before the woman gave birth. Hacienda Healthcare released a statement Wednesday confirming Sutherland was terminated immediately after the facility learned of his arrest. Police said officers arrested Sutherland Tuesday after his DNA sample, obtained when police issued a search warrant for DNA from all male Hacienda Healthcare employees, matched with the DNA of the baby. Sutherland was not arrested at Hacienda Healthcare or even at his home, but at his lawyer's office.<doc-sep>"My parents, actually, they split up in Haiti, and I remember my mom couldn’t take care of us,” Sutherland told an interviewer in 2011. “She brought us to an orphanage, which, you know, one meal a day is a blessing if you have a cup of rice or something. Even though it’s an orphanage, you’ll be blessed if you have one cup or bowl of rice a day.”<doc-sep>A male nurse arrested in Arizona on suspicion of raping a quadriplegic woman who suddenly gave birth despite being in a vegetative state for 26 years, appeared in court on Wednesday. Nathan Sutherland, 36, is facing one charge of sexual assault and one count of vulnerable adult abuse after a DNA test identified him as the baby's father. The father-of-four did not enter a plea to the charges against him. A Maricopa County Superior Court commissioner placed the recently divorced defendant on a $500,000 cash-only bail bond. He is being held in the Maricopa County Jail and his next court appearance will be January 30. If released, he would be placed on house arrest and ordered to wear an electronic monitoring device. Scroll down for video Nathan Sutherland, 36, has been arrested after DNA evidence linked him to the rape of a quadriplegic patient who has been in a vegetative state for 26 years at a hospital in Phoenix, Arizona The defendant (left) appeared in court on Wednesday, just hours after his arrest was made public The 36-year-old is a devout Christian who tours local churches in Phoenix with his sister (right) under the group name, 'SLEEPLESSSOLJAZ' Wearing a T-shirt, athletic pants and a jacket, Sutherland was accompanied by defense attorney David Gregan, who said his client has no prior criminal record. Gregan told the court there was 'no direct evidence' to suggest his client had committed the crime, but he acknowledged the DNA evidence obtained by police. Sutherland - a Haitian orphan - has been a licensed practical nurse since 2011 and was directly responsible for caring for the victim at the Hacienda HealthCare Facility, according to police. He divorced from his wife, Bridget Sutherland, last year. The motion was ordered on December 28, 24 hours before the birth of the victim's child. The defendant refused to answer investigator's questions after his arrest. Hacienda officials say Sutherland went through an 'extensive background check' before he was hired. They added that he was terminated 'the moment our leadership team learned of his arrest'. 'Every member of the Hacienda organization is troubled beyond words to think that a licensed practical nurse could be capable of seriously harming a patient,' the statement continued. 'Once again, we offer an apology and send our deepest sympathies to the client and her family, to the community and to our agency partners at every level.' Male staff working at the medical facility were ordered by police to submit DNA tests as part of their investigation into the sexual assault. However, Phoenix police Sgt. Tommy Thompson say Sutherland's DNA wasn't volunteered and they had to file a court order which passed on Tuesday. Sutherland was arrested the same day after the results came back as a match. Sutherland divorced from his wife last Bridgett last year (left). The pair lived with their four-children in their Phoenix home, a neighbor revealed. Bridgett owns a catering company which Sutherland has worked for (seen right) According to court documents, the motion of divorce was ordered on December 28, 24 hours before the birth of the victim's child (pictured: Sutherland sings at Bridgett's birthday in October, 2016) The defendant has worked at Hacienda for eight years. State records show he was first became a clinical nursing assistant in 2005, before becoming an licensed practitioner nurse. The 36-year-old is a Haitian orphan and devout christian who regularly tours local churches to perform Christian rap songs in the group 'SLEEPLESSOULJAZ', alongside his sister. 'My parent's split up in Haiti and I remember my mom couldn't take care of us, so she took us to an orphanage', Sutherland said in 2011. 'Even though it was an orphanage you were blessed if you had one cup or bowl of rice or something a day,' he added. Sutherland (left) is a Haitian orphan who was adopted to the United States when he was a child Sutherland (right) has worked at Hacienda since 2011. He has been a nurse since 2005, according to state documents A former neighbor of the nurse has described him as a 'quiet family man'. Esella Burr said on Wednesday that Sutherland was her neighbor for more than five years until he sold his Phoenix-area home in October. Burr says he shared the home with his wife and four children, and she saw the couple leave for church every Sunday. She says Sutherland would sometimes wave or start a conversation with her and had mentioned that he enjoyed his job as a nurse. Sutherland will next appear at the Arizona Downtown Superior Court on January 30. Hacienda HealthCare in Phoenix where a 29-year-old woman gave birth despite being incapacitated for more than a decade The woman gave birth to a baby boy on December 29 as staff at Hacienda HealthCare frantically called 911 for assistance, telling an operator that they had not known the 112-pound patient was pregnant. The baby has since been released from the hospital and the victim's family have said they will take care of the boy. 'We owed this arrest to the victim. We owed this arrest to the newest member of our community - that innocent baby,' Phoenix police Sergeant Tommy Thomson said. 'The baby I am told is doing good,' he added. 'We can't always choose how we come into this life, but we can choose as a community how we will love this child — and that's what we need to do.' A lawyer for the woman's family has said the infant 'has been born into a loving family and will be well cared for,' according to The New York Times. According to the victim's family, their daughter's condition includes severe brain damage, seizure disorder, and psycho-motor retardation. She's been in a vegetative state for 26 years and is quadriplegic. 'She does not speak but has some ability to move her limbs, head and neck,' The family's attorney said in a statement. 'The important thing here is that contrary to what's been reported, she is a person, albeit with significant intellectual disabilities. 'She has feelings, likes to be read to, enjoys soft music and is capable of responding to people she is familiar with, especially family.' Sgt. Tommy Thompson said investigators are working to determine whether other patients at the facility have been abused. Officials of the non-profit health care company say they will review and improve 'what is already an in-depth vetting process' for caregivers at the hospice. They also added that extra security measures have been implemented over the past few weeks to ensure the safety of their patients. Hacienda HealthCare CEO Bill Timmons stepped down last month in light of the scandal Hacienda HealthCare's CEO William Timmons resigned on December 31 as the provider announced new safety measures, including more than one staff member being present during patient interactions and more scrutiny of visitors. A former worker at the healthcare center previously said staff were financial incentives to encourage them not to officially report problems and that there was a climate of fear among her colleagues. Marla Kica also claimed Timmons would get the final sign off on every final report and recommendation as he was her direct supervisor, that staff were afraid of him. Regulators wanted to remove developmentally disabled patients from the long-term care facility years before the woman gave birth. On Friday, Hacienda announced that another female patient had alleged physical abuse at the hands of staff members. Hacienda officials said in a news release that the patient accused a registered nurse and a certified caregiver, both women, of yelling at her and hitting her head and arm. Hacienda officials said the patient showed no signs of injury or abuse and that the two workers had no history of complaints and denied the allegations. They were placed on administrative leave during an investigation. Police say they were informed about the complaint but weren't able to corroborate anything. Phoenix police officers are pictured here visiting residents of the home around the time of the holidays in 2014 Members of the Phoenix police department would regularly visit the home during the holidays<doc-sep>
The Arizona nurse accused of sexually assaulting an incapacitated female patient at a Phoenix long-term care center was once part of a Christian rap duo with his sister. Nathan Sutherland, who was arrested Wednesday and charged with sexual assault and vulnerable adult abuse, performed under the name SLS or Sleeplessouljaz, his former pastor told NBC News. “That was back in the early days, him and his sister had a rap act,” said Pastor Marie Mosley of the Faith Center West Family Church in Mesa, Arizona. “I haven’t seen him since 2003. He’s been in a lot of churches since then.” Sutherland, 36, appeared in court for the first time Wednesday. He was released on $500,000 cash bail, the AP reported, with the order that he wear an electronic monitoring device. His next court date is Jan. 30. His lawyer, David Gregan, said Sutherland has lived in Arizona since 1993 and has no prior criminal record. “There’s no direct evidence that Mr. Sutherland has committed these acts,” Gregan said. “I know at this point there’s DNA. But he will have a right to his own DNA expert.” Nathan Sutherland Maricopa County Sheriff's Office A licensed practical nurse, Sutherland had worked at Hacienda HealthCare in Phoenix since 2011. The chain of events that led to his arrest began in dramatic fashion Dec. 29 when an incapacitated, 29-year-old patient suddenly went into labor and gave birth to a boy. Staff at the facility had been unaware she was pregnant. In the weeks since, one of the doctors responsible for the woman’s care was suspended and another resigned. The CEO of the center also stepped down. After investigators took DNA samples from male staff at the center, Sutherland turned out to be a match, authorities said. In a statement, Hacienda HealthCare said Sutherland had undergone “an extensive background check” before he was hired. He was fired after his arrest. In a video posted online previously by Dog Entertainment Ministries, Sutherland said he and his sister are from Haiti and were adopted by an Arizona couple when he was 7 and his sister was 4. “My parents, they split up in Haiti,” he said. “I remember my mom couldn’t take care of us and brought us to an orphanage…One meal a day was a blessing.” Sutherland said he was 10 when he started writing his own songs. A former neighbor, Esella Burr, said Sutherland lived near her for more than five years until he sold his Phoenix-area home in October. She told the Associated Press that he was a quiet family man and a regular churchgoer. Burr said Sutherland shared the home with his wife and four children, and that he was friendly and would sometimes wave or start a conversation with her. She said he once gave her a ride and told her he liked his job as a nurse.