BANGOR, Maine — A Penobscot County jury Wednesday found a certified nursing assistant not guilty of fondling the genitals of a male patient in February at the local Maine Veterans Home.
Rodger D. Shanklin, 35, of Bangor took the stand in his own defense and denied inappropriately touching the 70-year-old man who was admitted to the home in January after he suffered a heart attack. The alleged victim also suffers from Parkinson’s Disease, according to testimony during the 2½-day trial.
Shanklin, who worked the overnight shift at the home, was charged with endangering the welfare of a dependent person, a felony, and unlawful sexual touching and assault, both misdemeanors. If convicted, he would have faced up to five years in prison on the felony and a year in jail on the other charges.
The jury deliberated for about an hour before announcing the not guilty verdict.
A conviction also could have affected his license as a CNA.
“We are hopeful he’ll be able to resume his career that was abruptly interrupted,” Shanklin’s attorney, Charles Budd of Bangor, said.
The attorney added that his client felt “vindicated and relieved” by the verdict.
Assistant Attorney General Lisa Bogue of the Health Care Crimes Unit prosecuted the case.
The Attorney General’s Office is the designated enforcement agency charged with prosecuting cases of Medicaid and Medicare fraud and protecting patients in health care facilities that receive federal funds, according Leanne Robbin, chief of the Financial Crimes and Civil Rights Division.
“These kinds of cases, when there are no witnesses, are always hard to prove,” Robbin, who oversees the unit for which Bogue works, said Wednesday. “We had the burden of proving beyond a reasonable doubt that the victim was endangered and assaulted.”
She also praised the man, his wife and daughter. The elderly man, who now is being cared for at home, did not testify, but a video recording of his deposition was played for the jury. The women attended the trial.
“It took a lot of courage for the victim to come forward and have a public trial,” the prosecutor said.
The elderly man on Feb. 12 told a day shift CNA that he refused to allow Shanklin to clean him during the night because he had fondled him. That led to an investigation by the Attorney General’s office and Shanklin’s prosecution.
Budd theorized in his closing arguments that the elderly man, who had never been cared for by a male nurse before, might have misunderstood Shanklin’s appropriate efforts at washing him.
“I think that he was experiencing a number of extremely stressful events in his life and that the experience of becoming completely helpless followed by the assignment of a male nurse to his care overwhelmed him,” the defense attorney said.
On 8/28/08 at 11:26 AM,
Mainelyme wrote:
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Well, thankfully this man is now being cared for in a good Christian Home!
On 8/28/08 at 2:53 PM,
aroostookbuck wrote:
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I agree with the findings in the case of Roger D Shanklin of Bangor, My wife worked in a nursing home for over 20 years, and she used to tell me about the elderley ladies not wanting male nurses to touch them, so why wouldn't a 70 year old male feel the same way about a male nurse being his attendent But I guess my point is all he had to do is refuse the sttendent care and another nurse would have been assignned to him ,instead he asscused Roger of something I highley doubt he did.. Male or female attendent still would have had to touch the mans private parts to clean him up if he was incontenient. God love them Both. I can feel the elderley mans emberasment for haveing to have a male attendent, and he did have patients rights to refuse the assigned nurse. A voice from Aroostook county
On 8/30/08 at 4:58 PM,
cvshaw wrote:
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Men are considered, in general,much more ethical than women in general, by law,religion, and custom, historically. At the moderately high IQ of 120, men outnumber women 20 to 1. This ratio increases as IQ increases. Given the aforementioned case and some of the replies to the same represent confirmation of the aforementioned, that is, the lack of character, intelligence, and ethics of women as compared to men.
On 8/31/08 at 5:02 PM,
vichet wrote:
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cvshaw, Huh??
On 9/2/08 at 11:06 AM,
Joshua wrote:
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cvshaw, i'd be willing to bet that the source of your animosity toward women is the fact that no woman has touched you in probably never will. That rant has to be about the most mangled, illogical argument i've ever heard.
On 9/2/08 at 11:39 AM,
David889327 wrote:
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cvshaw - Could you cite a source for your information? I find it fascinating, but I'd like to be sure of my facts before I start spreading it around at cocktail parties!
On 9/7/08 at 2:09 PM,
ushouldno wrote:
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There is a reason why it took less than one hour to reach a verdict. You should really know more about a case like this before start pointing fingers. I have worked with Mr. Shanklin and he takes better care of these residents than 90% of the other staff. He goes to work for the residents and doesn't go to make friends with the staff and unfortunately a certain few staff members have been after him since THEY started. You know how you are and from someone with a lot of experience you could learn a lot from Mr. Shanklin. Go to work shut your mouth and do your JOB!
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