Compassionate Nursing Home Abuse Lawyers Serving San Bernardino, CA
If you believe a loved one is being abused or neglected in a San Bernardino nursing home, California law gives your family powerful legal tools. Under the Elder Abuse and Dependent Adult Civil Protection Act (Welfare & Institutions Code § 15600 et seq.), victims can recover attorney’s fees, punitive damages, and pain and suffering damages that survive the victim’s death — protections that go well beyond standard personal injury law. Call our nursing home abuse attorneys today. The consultation is free.
Nursing home abuse is an ever-increasing problem that endangers the lives of our elderly loved ones. If you have a loved one in San Bernardino who has reported abuse, or you have reason to suspect elder abuse, contact the law firm of Aitken * Aitken * Cohn for experienced and compassionate representation. The first course of action for your San Bernardino nursing home abuse attorney is to help put a stop to the abuse and ensure the immediate safety of the resident. The next step is a thorough investigation and an elder abuse lawsuit. Our firm has the experience and compassion you need to help you through this troubling time and will do whatever we can to expose any wrongdoing and ensure the responsible parties are held accountable for their actions.
Types of Nursing Home Abuse
Nursing home abuse can take many forms, ranging from emotional or psychological abuse, to outright physical violence and sexual assault. Many nursing home residents are unable to communicate or may be intimidated into silence. Warning signs of elder abuse include abrupt changes in behavior, decreased communication, rapid weight loss, unexplained injuries or a staffer that seems unwilling to leave you alone with the resident.
Poor hygiene, unwashed clothing, or untreated bedsores
Staff who refuse to allow you to visit privately with your loved one
Your loved one appears fearful when certain staff are present
Missing personal belongings or unexplained financial transactions (financial abuse)
A San Bernardino nursing home abuse lawyer can assist you with any type of elder abuse, including:
Verbal and emotional abuse – can include swearing or yelling, manipulation, and condescension
Negligent care/neglect – can include a lack of proper hygiene, poor nutrition and dehydration, failure to care for bed sores and over-medication
Physical abuse – can include slapping, punching, or other methods of beating, and the use of restraints to confine patients to their beds
Causes Of Nursing Home Abuse
Nursing home neglect and abuse are unfortunate occurrences that can occur unexpectedly, with reports suggesting that these issues have affected nearly one in every three care facilities nationwide. Nursing home neglect can be attributed to various factors, including:
Understaffing: When nursing homes are inadequately staffed, residents receive limited individual attention, heightening the risk of neglect. A 2018 report by the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO Report GAO-18-33) found that nursing home inspections systematically failed to identify and document serious abuse incidents, and that federal oversight of state inspection programs was inadequate..
Negligent Hiring: Owing to severe understaffing, many nursing homes may fail to conduct thorough background checks and verify the qualifications of job candidates, potentially leading to the hiring of individuals with a history of abusive behavior.
Inadequate Training: Staff members in nursing homes who receive inadequate training are more likely to engage in neglectful behaviors. Improperly trained staff members are also prone to making medication errors, mishandling elderly residents, and contributing to other issues that affect the well-being of those under their care.
Frequently Asked Questions — Nursing Home Abuse in California
Under the EADACPA, abuse includes: physical abuse, neglect, financial exploitation, abandonment, isolation, and mental or emotional abuse. It applies to both nursing homes and assisted living facilities.
Yes. If negligence or abuse contributed to a resident’s death, the family can file both a wrongful death claim (CCP § 377.60) and an elder abuse survival claim — which includes the victim’s pre-death pain and suffering and attorney’s fees.
Medical costs, relocation expenses, pain and suffering, emotional distress, attorney’s fees (unique to elder abuse claims under EADACPA), and punitive damages if the abuse was intentional or reckless.
Through medical records showing untreated conditions, state inspection reports showing violations, staff testimony, your own documented observations, and expert testimony from a geriatric care specialist.
Yes. The National Center on Elder Abuse estimates that 1 in 10 older adults experiences some form of abuse. Understaffing — the primary driver of neglect — remains widespread in California facilities.
You can file a complaint with the California Department of Social Services (CDSS) Community Care Licensing Division, which oversees residential care facilities, or with the California Department of Public Health (CDPH), which regulates skilled nursing facilities. The California Long-Term Care Ombudsman (1-800-231-4024) is another resource — they are advocates for nursing home residents and can conduct independent investigations. For immediate safety threats, call 911 and San Bernardino County Adult Protective Services at 1-877-565-2020. Filing a complaint creates an official record that can support a future legal claim.
California CDPH publishes inspection reports and deficiency citations for all licensed skilled nursing facilities. San Bernardino County has a significant number of facilities — ranging from small board-and-care homes to large skilled nursing centers — and, like facilities statewide, some have received citations for insufficient staffing, medication errors, failure to prevent pressure ulcers, and inadequate care plans. Your attorney can obtain a facility's complete inspection history, staffing ratios, and complaint records as part of building your case. This history is often the most powerful evidence of a pattern of neglect.
Financial elder abuse occurs when a caregiver, facility staff member, or other person wrongfully takes, conceals, or uses an elder's property or funds without authorization. In nursing home settings, this can include: staff stealing cash or valuables from residents' rooms, unauthorized changes to a resident's bank account or will, coercing residents to change beneficiary designations, and billing fraud (charging for services never provided). Under California's EADACPA, financial abuse is treated as seriously as physical abuse — in some cases, victims can recover treble damages (three times the actual damages), and the facility's management can be held personally liable.
Yes — and in many cases, removing your loved one from the abusive facility immediately is the right priority, even before the legal process begins. You have the legal right to discharge a resident from any California nursing home at any time. Give written notice to the facility and arrange for transfer to another care setting. Your attorney can simultaneously seek a court order requiring the current facility to cooperate with the transfer and preserve all relevant records. The safety of your loved one always comes first — the legal claim follows.
Nursing home abuse cases typically take 1–3 years to resolve in California, depending on complexity, the number of defendants, and whether the case goes to trial. Cases involving clear physical abuse with documented injuries and strong witnesses often settle faster than complex neglect cases requiring extensive medical expert testimony. California's EADACPA provisions — including mandatory attorneys' fees for successful plaintiffs — create strong incentives for facilities to settle rather than litigate publicly. Our attorneys pursue the fastest resolution consistent with maximum recovery for your family.
If you believe your family member is experiencing nursing home abuse, contact our San Bernardino nursing home abuse attorney today for assistance.
Contact a San Bernardino Nursing Home Abuse Lawyer
When the trust that you and your elderly loved one has placed in the hands of a nursing home is broken, you have legal options. Elder abuse is a crime, and the individuals and facilities responsible for the conditions can also be held financially responsible.
Compensation for nursing home abuse can include money for medical treatment as well as the pain and suffering incurred. Contact the law firm of Aitken * Aitken * Cohn today to speak with an experienced San Bernardino nursing home abuse lawyer who can help you obtain justice in your case.
