Woman Who Fell Off Bed Beaten To Death In Care Home; Caretaker Indicted After Video Shows Abuse

By Suneeta Sunny  

KEY POINTS

• Cynthia Garrison was found dead on June 19, 2020
• Her body had blunt force injuries
• Anthony Freeman is being held in Shelby County Jail

representational image. The victim was found dead on her bed with blunt force injuries and cuts on her body. Photo: pixabay

A man has been indicted for murdering a vulnerable woman at a Tennessee care home after a surveillance video showed him beating the victim who had fallen out of her bed.

Anthony Freeman, 53, who worked in a non-licensed care home for elderly and vulnerable adults in Cordova, was indicted Monday on first-degree murder charges in connection with the death of 59-year-old Cynthia Garrison, a news release from the office of Shelby County District Attorney Amy Weirich said.

Garrison was found dead in her metal-frame hospital bed inside the care home on June 19, 2020. Officers who responded at the scene determined that her body had blunt force injuries.

Investigators reviewed surveillance footage at the center to know the events that had led to Garrison's demise. The video showed Garrison falling out of her bed hours before her death. Freeman could then be seen in the footage beating her with a board for more than two hours.

After the assault, "she [Garrison] was left on the floor while Freeman sat in a nearby chair," Weirich said in the release. Freeman eventually put her back in the bed and cleaned up the area where he had beaten the victim, the video revealed.

In addition to the murder charges, Freeman was also indicted on felony charges on counts of aggravated abuse, neglect of a vulnerable adult and tampering with evidence. He is currently being held in Shelby County Jail on a $150,000 bond, reported ABC 24.

Another care worker in Iowa was arrested earlier this month after she was caught on camera pinning down an autistic man and physically assaulting him. Dzenifa Kostic, 32, was taken into custody after the victim's mother received a video of the assault. The clip, which circulated on social media, showed Kostic sitting on top of the non-verbal victim while attacking him. During her arrest, Kostic claimed she had only tried to control the man who had been smacking and choking himself. Kostic was charged with wanton neglect of a dependent adult.

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Woman Who Fell Off Bed Beaten To Death In Care Home; Caretaker Indicted After Video Shows Abuse