Opinion: Safety Must Be Ensured in N.J.

From the Star Ledger's Editorial Page.

NEWARK, N.J. -- Tara O’Leary was just 28 when she died in the care of the Division of Developmental Disabilities. Doctors say she starved to death. She weighed 48 pounds.
Authorities say O’Leary was kept in a room that reeked of urine, neglected by caretaker Debra Sloan in a state-licensed foster home in Bloomsbury. And while O’Leary crawled in her own feces, caseworker Bridget Grimes wrote sunny reports that described her happily playing with puzzles and longing for piano lessons.
When O’Leary finally was rushed to the hospital after months of neglect, it was too late to save her; she died in November 2008.
Sloan and Grimes have been indicted on 17 counts, including aggravated assault, official misconduct and neglect. The Division of Developmental Disabilities insisted this was an isolated case. But a lawsuit said another woman who had been in Sloan’s care passed away from an untreated intestinal infection after moving to another home.
On Friday, the governor signed legislation that will create a registry of paid caregivers and volunteers who have abused, neglected or exploited individuals with developmental disabilities.
There are 41,000 developmentally disabled persons under the state’s care. Are they safe? Are they fed? Are they healthy? Are caseworkers doing their jobs? Is anyone watching them? We need definitive answers.