Walnut Creek

Criminal Charge Filed in Atria Walnut Creek Poisoning Case

This is the first criminal charge filed in a series of poisonings of Atria Senior Living dementia residents in San Mateo and Walnut Creek.

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A worker at Atria Walnut Creek has been charged with a felony complaint in the poisoning death of 94-year-old Constantine Canoun.

NBC Bay Area’s Investigative Unit first reported on the dementia resident’s August 31st death after the company admitted its staff at their San Mateo location accidentally poisoned two other dementia residents.

In the Walnut Creek case, 54-year-old Lateshia Sherise Starling of San Pablo faces one count of elder or dependent adult abuse, resulting in Canoun’s death. The complaint against Starling states while having care and custody of Canoun, she “willfully caused and permitted him to be placed in a situation in which his health was endangered and knew and reasonably should have known that (Mr. Canoun) was an elder and dependent adult.”

Days after Canoun’s death, Atria Senior Living, the entity that operates Atria Walnut Creek, sent a statement saying, “It is our belief that this was a food related reaction … We do not believe the resident ingested any cleaning fluid or any chemicals.”

That information is not accurate, according to the Contra Costa County Coroner’s Office.

In Canoun’s coroner’s report obtained by the Investigative Unit, the cause of his accidental death is listed as “caustic injury to pharynx, esophagus and stomach … [due to] ingestion of liquid cleaning agent.”

Canoun’s incident happened just four days before workers at Atria Senior Living’s San Mateo location accidentally poisoned three other dementia residents. The company says staff in San Mateo accidentally served cleaning fluid to those seniors mistaking it for fruit juice.

Trudy Maxwell and Peter Shroeder died as a result. Their families are suing Atria Senior living in civil court and the cases are ongoing. The status of the third victim is unclear.

Canoun’s son said, in his father’s case, Atria Senior Living denied it was anything like what happened in San Mateo. He believes the company's months-long characterization of his father's incident, including claiming it was caused by Flamin' Hot Cheetos, was ridiculous.

In a statement to the Investigative Unit Friday, Atria Senior Living said, “We are aware of the criminal complaint against our former employee and will continue to work with the authorities. This incident has been a tragedy. Our deepest sympathies remain with the resident’s family and all other families and staff affected.”

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