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| CHARGES—The Royal Gardens senior living home was the scene of elder abuse in 2020. The director of the facility, an Oak Park woman, was guilty of not doing anything about it. Acorn file photo |
A 55-year-old Oak Park woman pleaded guilty to charges relating to elder abuse in the 2020 case of a Camarillo assisted living facility where an employee of hers raped one dementia patient and attempted to rape another, Ventura County District Attorney Erik Nasarenko said.
Lisa Cohen entered her plea Aug. 11 to the crime of being mandated to report elder abuse and failing to do so. Ventura County Judge Gilbert Romero sentenced Cohen to 120 days in county jail and 12 months probation.
Cohen was the director of the Royal Gardens Assisted Living Facility in Camarillo, where employee Joel Gonzales allegedly raped a 90-year-old dementia patient and attempted to rape another 82-year-old resident in October 2020.
In January 2021, Gonzales was arrested for sexual assault on the two women, who were residents of the Royal Gardens home where Gonzales worked as a caregiver. He was 25 and a resident of Camarillo when the crimes allegedly took place.
His arrest for the elder abuse came at the Ventura County jail, where he was already in custody for the attempted strangling of a 6-year-old girl.
Police said Gonzales was staying at a relative’s home in the 1500 block of Calle La Cumbre when he violently attacked and tried to strangle the child in late 2020. According to officials, the girl was a guest at the house.
While investigating Gonzales regarding the attack on the girl, detectives reportedly learned about the sexual assaults on the elderly women after family members of one of the victims reported it to police. Last year, Gonzales pleaded not guilty to his crimes by reason of insanity.
Authorities said two facility administrators, including Cohen of Oak Park, knew about the assaults on the older women and failed to report them, even when questioned by the police about Gonzales
Cohen was aware of the alleged crimes near the time they occurred and failed to report Gonzales’s actions to law enforcement, the district attorney said.
“Under the law, a mandated reporter is any person who has assumed care or custody of an elder or dependent adult, regardless of whether they receive compensation,” the DA said in a statement.
Elder and dependent adult care custodians, health practitioners,
clergy members, employees of Adult Protective Services, law enforcement
personnel and all officers and employees of financial institutions are
required by law to make a report of elder abuse or neglect if they see
it, suspect it or hear about it.
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