Convicted elder abusers seek waiver to remaining jail time

Published 11:43 am Tuesday, September 27, 2011

ALBERT LEA — The two young women convicted of abusing residents at Good Samaritan Society of Albert Lea in 2008 are slated to appear in Freeborn County District Court Tuesday to request that their final 60-day jail stint be waived.

Freeborn County District Court Judge Steve Schwab in 2010 sentenced Brianna Broitzman, 22, and Ashton Larson, 21, to staggered 180-day jail sentences after each was convicted of three counts of disorderly conduct by a caregiver. Each count represented a different victim at the nursing home.

Under the sentence, both were required to serve a 60-day jail term immediately, and then a second and third 60-day jail term would come later. Before the second and third stints, Broitzman and Larson would have the chance to ask to waive the terms.

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Schwab approved the waiver of the second stints in May, saying that both young women had been compliant with their conditions of probation and appeared to be on the right track.

This time around, he will again review the motions from the defendants, along with reports from probation officers regarding each element of their sentence.

Broitzman and Larson were two of six young women who initially faced charges tied to allegations of abuse at the nursing home.

The allegations surfaced after the release of a Minnesota Department of Health report in August 2008 that concluded four teenagers were involved in verbal, sexual and emotional abuse of 15 residents at the nursing home.

The abuse reportedly took place at Good Samaritan from January through May 2008.

The residents suffered from mental degradation conditions such as Alzheimer’s disease and dementia.