Brent Adams & Associates Legal Blog

Alleged Sexual Assault At Wake Forest Nursing Home

A man from Wake County has been accused of sexually assaulting a patient at a rest home in Wake Forest.

According to police, 42-year-old Michael Brodie, a nursing assistant, allegedly assaulted a female resident at the Wake Forest Adult Care Center.

The alleged incident took place in February, however, the victim has only recently come forward. The only comment Wake Forest Care Center Director Terri Allen would make about the incident was that "It was very inappropriate." She did not have further details to offer.

Allen said that she has only been an employee at the center for three months and was not the person who hired Brodie.

Laws regulate who is or isn't eligible to work at an adult care facility. The center was not in violation of the rules, but a criminal background check may not do much to protect residents.

According to Allen, they conducted a background check, however they did not find what an investigation team from ABC11 Eyewitness News discovered: This incident is not the first brush with the law Brodie has had.

Brodie's most recent offense was a traffic violation in 2008, but his record also includes charges of misdemeanor simple assault and assault with a deadly weapon dating back to 1986.

According to North Carolina state officials, rest homes are only required by law to conduct background checks. The state also maintains a registry of health care workers who have been accused of neglect and abuse.

In the case of Brodie, no red flags were discovered, according to the law, meaning that it is up to private centers such as Wake Forest Adult Care Center to determine who to hire.

Allen said that the victim is okay, but she fired Brodie after an internal investigation was conducted. She said that the decision was unexpected, much like the surprising allegation against an employee that had been considered to be one of the most trustworthy.

Brodie is currently in prison and is scheduled to appear in court later in May.