Edgewood Woman Sentenced for Neglect of Vulnerable Adults
Found Guilty of Leaving Two Disabled Women Alone and Unattended at White Marsh Mall

BALTIMORE, MD (January 8, 2008) - Attorney General Douglas F. Gansler announced today that April Stevens, 27, of Edgewood was found guilty of neglect of two vulnerable adults left in her care. Baltimore County Circuit Court Judge John G. Turnbull, II, sentenced Stevens to two years in jail, all but six days suspended, and two years probation. The court ordered that as a special condition of probation, Stevens may not care for vulnerable adults during the period of her probation.

Stevens, an employee of the Association for Retarded Citizens (ARC), Northern Chesapeake Region, Harford County, was the sole caregiver for two developmentally disabled adult women. One of the women is severely disabled and blind; the other has Downs Syndrome and a seizure disorder. Because of their medical conditions, the two women should never be left unsupervised.

On December 8, 2006 at approximately 7:00 p.m., Stevens drove the two women to White Marsh Mall and parked the ARC’s minivan in a handicapped space. She then left the two women in the vehicle while she went shopping at the mall. The outside temperature was 28 degrees that evening. A handicapped citizen who was searching the parking lot for a handicapped parking space noticed the two women in the van. After waiting for approximately an hour for the owner of the van to arrive, the witness contacted mall security who then called Baltimore County police. After an additional 20 minutes, Stevens exited the mall accompanied by a friend.

The case was prosecuted by the Medicaid Fraud Control Unit (MFCU) of the Maryland Attorney General’s Office and investigated by the United States Office of Inspector General, Health and Human Services Division. In making today’s announcement, Attorney General Gansler thanked Assistant Attorney General Richard Bardos for his work on the case.