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Halifax police investigate homicide at nursing home
Halifax’s latest homicide victim is a 92-year-old woman who died Saturday, almost four weeks after she was pushed and fell at the hands of another resident of her nursing home.
The woman succumbed to her injuries at Arborstone Enhanced Care Nursing Home on Purcells Cove Road after a Jan. 7 incident involving her and another elderly female resident, according to a statement from Shannex, the company that owns the home.
The Shannex statement said the victim and the woman who allegedly pushed her were both in their dementia unit and that neither woman had a history of aggression. The injured woman went to hospital for 11 days before her return to Arborstone.
“We investigated the incident fully at the time of the occurrence and determined that the cause of the fall was unpredictable and not something that the staff could have prevented,” the statement said.
Despite the decision to rule the case a homicide – which was made by the province's medical examiner – police have decided not to detain the woman they think contributed to the other woman’s death.
“At this time there’s no believed risk to the public or other residents,” regional police spokesman Const. Brian Palmeter said Tuesday.
The Halifax Regional Police/RCMP integrated major crime unit will investigate. They first heard of the incident after the woman’s death.
“Given the circumstances around the death and the circumstances around the people involved in the incident, there’s a question whether or not criminal culpability exists,” Palmeter said.
A number of factors can play a role in determining criminal culpability, he said.
“One potential one is somebody’s mental condition at the time of the incident. Another one is whether or not self-defence is an issue. Essentially what we have to determine is whether or not the incident on Jan. 7 rises to the level of a criminal offence and then whether or not the person is ultimately responsible for the incident”
According to their website, Arborstone has space for 190 clients, which include seniors requiring nursing home care and young adults with special needs.
In a media session held mid-afternoon Tuesday, Health Minister Maureen MacDonald expressed remorse and concern about the incident.
“It’s a very sad situation … and we will gather extensive information.”
She said the department's critical incident policy will be followed to gather information and determine if proper procedures were followed.
“We will examine it very closely to learn what, if anything, we need to change.”
MacDonald said she’s spoken with family members of the victim, but she declined to say if they are considering any legal action over the killing.
Police didn’t release the victim’s name, but The Chronicle Herald has learned that it is Pauline Ethel Hartling, whose husband of 46 years (Ken Hartling) died just over a week before Jan. 7.
They had no children and both of them worked as school teachers.
Members of her family declined to comment Tuesday.
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