DELAWARE, Ohio (WCMH) — A former nurse accused of killing a central Ohio nursing home resident will not be required to post bail.
Aminata Fofana, a former nurse at the Lewis Center nursing home Capri Gardens, was released on her own recognizance Friday, agreeing to attend all future court hearings and remain in Ohio, according to records from the Delaware County Court of Common Pleas.
Fofana, of Columbus, is facing charges of reckless homicide and involuntary manslaughter after she allegedly failed to replace nursing home resident Paul Mowery’s oxygen mask in May 2021.
Around 6:45 a.m. on May 20, 2021, Fofana reportedly removed Mowery’s tracheostomy mask because it was soiled. About an hour later, a different nurse entered Mowery’s room and found him dead, according to reports from the Ohio Department of Health and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.
Reports from multiple agencies are consistent in describing a death by suffocation because Paul’s tracheostomy tubing was on the floor, not connecting him to the oxygen he needed to survive.
Fofana, who was eventually fired and stripped of her nursing license, reportedly told federal investigators in June 2021 that she forgot to replace the mask.
Mowery’s wife, Luana Mowery, filed a wrongful death lawsuit against Capri Gardens, its parent company and Fofana in January.
Her next hearing before the Delaware County Court of Common Pleas is scheduled for July 22, court records state.