South Plainfield Nursing Home Resident Charged With Manslaughter

SOUTH PLAINFIELD, NJ — Middlesex County Prosecutor Yolanda Ciccone announced Friday she will file a manslaughter charge against an 81-year-old South Plainfield nursing home resident who police say punched a fellow resident last week, killing her.

Angel Bermontiz, 81, originally from Piscataway but now a resident of AristaCare at Cedar Oaks in South Plainfield, was charged Thursday with one count of second-degree reckless manslaughter in the death of Clara Sutkowski, 91.

A lawyer for Sutkowski's family, Vivian Demas, said they did not have any immediate comment on the manslaughter charge, "beyond thanking the Middlesex Prosecutor for their swift action on this matter."

The incident happened last Monday, Jan. 16: Police responded to the nursing home at 3:40 p.m. that day for a 911 call of a male patient who was being combative.

When police got there, they found Bermontiz being restrained by staff in his bed; he was screaming and cursing. A staff member told police he had just "knocked out" a fellow resident.

This took pace on AristaCare's third floor, which is their memory care/Alzheimer's unit, said Sutkowski's family.

Prosecutor Ciccone said detectives from her office investigated, and they say Bermontiz slapped Sutkowski, causing her to fall and hit her head on the floor. Her family says she was punched in her left eye socket, causing a brain bleed that doctors told the family they were unable to stop.

Sutkowski died a few days later, Jan. 19, at Robert Wood Johnson University Medical Center in New Brunswick.

The Middlesex County Medical Examiner ruled Sutkowski's death a homicide.

Sutkowski's family filed a complaint with AristaCare, and is looking into legal action.

"We feel as a family this kind of death could have been avoided," said Sutowski’s great-niece, Nicole Kupko, 41. "We know this man had been aggressive with staff and other patients before. (He had) previous events displaying this type of behavior. And nothing was done about it. He was still free to walk among the other residents."

"It's about making people aware of the problems in these nursing homes," she continued. "In their memory units or dementia units, they have residents who have been violent or displayed violent behavior. And yet they are not kept isolated or kept away from other residents. They are allowed to be among the general population. There are obviously inadequacies in these facilities."

Original Patch report: Woman, 91, Dies After Being Assaulted In South Plainfield Nursing Home

When this Patch reporter called AristaCare at Cedar Oaks in South Plainfield, a receptionist who picked up said "no comment" and hung up the phone.

However, AristaCare did provide a statement to News 12 and other media, saying they are cooperating fully with the police investigation.

“We regard all our residents as part of our extended family, grieve for the loss of one of our cherished residents and extend our deepest condolences to the family,” the statement read. “We also remain committed to providing our support and full cooperation to the authorities who are presently investigating the circumstances surrounding this event.”

Man, 91, dies at Westfield nursing home after being punched by roommate

This is the second time this January a New Jersey nursing home resident died after being assaulted by another resident: In an entirely unrelated incident, a 91-year-old grandfather also died last week after he was assaulted by his roommate at a Westfield nursing home, according to News12.

Herman Walker also died on Thursday, Jan. 19, the same day as Sutkowski. He had been in the hospital for just over two weeks after an altercation with his roommate at the Complete Care Facility in Westfield.

Walker's granddaughter, Naliah Eden, told News12 Complete Care told the family Walker got into a fight with his roommate and had a couple of scratches and bruises. But when the family saw him in the emergency room, she said what they saw was "horrific."

She said her grandfather's face was swollen, his eyes were swollen shut and he was bleeding from his head.

That incident is currently under investigation by both Westfield Police and the Union County Prosecutor’s Office. At this time, no criminal charges have been filed in connection with that man's death.

Related: Man Assaulted In Westfield Nursing Home Dies Two Weeks Later (Jan. 24)