Former Prince George's County Caregiver Sentenced for Abuse of Vulnerable Adult

BALTIMORE, MD ( October 14, 2010) - Attorney General Douglas F. Gansler announced today that Mary Arung, 40, of the 14000 block of 4th Street in Laurel, was sentenced by Prince George's County Circuit Court Judge Maureen Lamasney to three years incarceration, with all but four days suspended for kicking and hitting a woman with Down syndrome. Arung, who was the victim's caregiver, was placed on supervised probation for two years.  In July 2010, a Prince George's County jury found Arung guilty of misdemeanor abuse of a vulnerable adult. 

Arung was a counselor at the Center for Social Change, an organization that provides support services to individuals with developmental disabilities.  On November 18, 2008, Arung took the victim to a doctor's appointment in Greenbelt.  When leaving the doctor's office, the victim refused to enter the van.  Arung screamed at the victim and then hit and kicked her in the back and head.  A citizen saw the abuse and intervened, preventing the victim from being injured substantially. 

The case was investigated by the Medicaid Fraud Control Unit of the Office of the Attorney General in conjunction with the Office of the Inspector General of the United States Department of Health and Human Services.  In making today's announcement, Attorney General Gansler thanked Assistant Attorney General Catherine S. Pascale for her work on the case.