Las Cruces Nursing Home Abuse Lawyer

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Las Cruces Nursing Home Abuse Attorney

Families in Las Cruces trust long-term care facilities to take care of their elderly loved ones with dignity and professionalism. Unfortunately, this does not always happen. A Las Cruces nursing home abuse lawyer protects seniors from mistreatment at nursing homes by fighting against negligence and intentional abuse. If you suspect a loved one is being abused in a Las Cruces nursing home, hire a nursing home abuse lawyer from our firm right away.

About Branch Law Firm

For more than four decades, the Branch Law Firm has stood up for the rights of the injured and defended New Mexico families, including seniors who have been abused. The firm was established by Turner W. Branch in 1966, and today is a nationally known plaintiffs’ firm with extensive experience in personal injury and wrongful death cases.

The Second Judicial District Court at Doña Ana County receives most Las Cruces claims, and our knowledge about its procedures and staff provides us with a strategic advantage. We can fight for your loved one’s rights and make sure that justice is served. Don’t wait to hold careless nursing homes accountable for their harm in Las Cruces.

Liability in Nursing Home Abuse Cases

Nursing home abuse in New Mexico encompasses a range of actions and inactions that either harm a resident or put them in danger. This can take many forms. Some are overt and obvious, such as physical abuse, and others are more hidden, such as financial abuse. Las Cruces nursing home abuse laws, such as the Resident Abuse and Neglect Act, criminalize certain forms of abuse and ensure that mistreated residents have legal avenues to pursue accountability.

The liability for abuse of a nursing home resident may not stop with the person who actually committed the abuse. There are a variety of parties that can be held responsible if their actions or lack of action resulted in the harm of a resident. These include:

The actual abuser
A negligent care facility
Third-party contractors, planners, or maintenance staff
Negligent staff
Visitors or family members

Types of Nursing Home Abuse Seen in Las Cruces

Identifying the various forms of abuse and neglect seen in New Mexico nursing homes is crucial for families who have loved ones living in these facilities. Each of the types of abuse and neglect can result in both short and long-term harm to the nursing home resident. These categories also include things that may be easy to spot, as well as things that may be more difficult for loved ones to observe. The most common types of nursing home abuse seen in Las Cruces include:

Physical Abuse. Physical abuse in a nursing home setting can include any intentional act that causes injury to a nursing home resident in Las Cruces. Physical abuse can also occur if a caregiver withholds pain medication from a resident. Examples of physical abuse include punching, kicking, shoving, burning, and slapping.
Sexual Abuse. Sexual abuse in Las Cruces nursing homes is defined as any sexual contact that occurs between a nursing home staff member and a resident. This includes physical contact as well as non-contact activity. Examples of this include rape, touching, rubbing, kissing, and fondling.
Emotional Abuse. Emotional abuse is sometimes referred to as psychological abuse in New Mexico. This involves inflicting pain that can cause emotional or mental anguish. Examples of this include intimidation, forced isolation, and making threats.
Financial Abuse. This abuse includes the unauthorized or illegal use of the resident’s funds or assets. In many cases, financial abuse can occur as a form of identity theft or forgery. Other examples of financial abuse include making unauthorized bank withdrawals, forging a resident’s name to make financial transactions, and stealing cash.
Neglect. Neglect in New Mexico nursing homes is often defined as a failure to provide for a nursing home resident’s physical, medical, emotional, or social needs. Failure to provide goods and services can result in physical and emotional harm to a resident. Neglect can include refusing to provide adequate care, failing to bathe or clothe the resident, or withholding food and water.

Signs of Nursing Home Abuse or Neglect

Of the over 14,000 nursing home facilities reported in the United States in 2024, 68 were in New Mexico. Those 68 facilities held over 5,354 nursing home facility residents in 2024. Unfortunately, sometimes nursing home facilities are understaffed and the employees are overworked, which can lead to tension that fuels abuse or an overloaded workload, which can lead to neglect.

Seniors may be unwilling or unable to speak of their experiences, so the burden may fall to family members to spot red flags. Warning signs may be physical or behavioral, or they may be financial or environmental clues. It is critical to recognize these patterns before continued harm occurs. Some common signs of nursing home abuse or neglect include:

Physical signs, such as bruises, cuts, burns, or fractures. Additionally, if the resident is constantly admitted to the hospital for injuries, this can be a sign of physical abuse.
Signs of neglect include bedsores, sudden and rapid weight loss, dehydration, and poor hygiene.
Shifts in their emotions or personality, such as fear, especially around certain people, withdrawal, depression, and mood swings.
Financial red flags, such as sudden large withdrawals from their bank accounts, and missing possessions.

Why Hire a Nursing Home Abuse Lawyer in Las Cruces?

If you suspect abuse in a Las Cruces nursing home or long-term care facility, you may feel anxious, helpless, and angry. Luckily, working with a skilled nursing home abuse lawyer can give you the confidence to fight back against harmful caretakers.

A compassionate and experienced attorney from the Branch Law Firm can guide a thorough investigation of your nursing home abuse case in Las Cruces, including subpoenas for records, depositions and interviews of staff and witnesses, and consultations with professionals. We can help you gather crucial evidence and craft a powerful legal claim that details the harm your loved one has endured.

Your Las Cruces Nursing Home Abuse Team

If your loved one was abused or neglected in a Las Cruces nursing home facility, do not wait to hire a nursing home abuse lawyer from our firm who can advocate for their safety. The team at the Branch Law Firm understands how detrimental cases of elder abuse and neglect can be and is prepared to fight for justice and hold negligent long-term care facilities accountable for the actions that they’ve caused.