Police in a Retirement Home

It was a situation nobody has ever seen before especially at a senior retirement home.  A patrol of officers started galloping up the stairs the sound of their stomping boots waking everyone with a jolt.

A crowd of staff and residents gathered right under the stairs, trying to know what was going on. One of the nurses started recording the entire episode on her phone. The large retirement home was then rented with screams. This scared the other residents to no end. They were curious yet scared of the situation at their home.

 Exhibition of Brutality

This story caused a huge uproar in the media and gave rise to a heated discussion as to how the elderly are treated in our society. Most sections of society believe that there is a cruel exhibition of brutality and a lack of compassion towards the elderly and something ought to be done to stop the nonchalance and in some cases right down cruelty towards the elderly people in society.

Learn more about the incident to form an opinion about the situation. This was an incident that stole the attention of the netizens in a big way.

The Sad Tale of Juanita Fitzgerald

Juanita Fitzgerald is a 93-year-old woman hailing from Tennessee who was spending in a retirement home in Eustis, Florida, for the last 10 years.

Senior retirement communities are the place to go to spend the final years of their life. They are surrounded by qualified staff who takes care of them in times of their need. But everything is not how they seem to be. In most cases, the condition of the elderly is not great, and like in the case of Juanita, the treatment meted to her was deplorable.

Trouble in Retirement Home

Situations like these that Juanita faced often led to different kinds of conflicting situations. In this case, too, the peace of the nursing home was suddenly disrupted as Juanita Fitzgerald had a brush with trouble with the Lake County Police Department.

When the situation happened only a few people in the retirement community had an inkling about the situation. But now, that the public came to know about it, they felt horrified about the situation. She was supposed to be a 93-year-old lady why would she be meted out of such a treatment?

A Solitary Individual

Juanita was known as a feisty 93-year-old woman whom everyone knew right from the staff and residents of the retirement community and was as one nurse puts it, 'fiercely independent.' She was also not on good terms with her family as she did not have a single visit from her family.

She wasn't overly friendly with the residents at the retirement community too. She had frequent brushes with trouble with the staff in the retirement center. So, she wasn't a very social person perse but that does not mean people will behave with her the way they did.

Throwing Tantrums

Usually, Juanita is said to be very polite, especially with the people working in the nursing home. However, she was said to behave unreasonably with the staff and would often throw tantrums and sometimes would even behave rudely with the people who served her.

However, these incidents were few and far between and the staff also knew how to deal with her as they were acquainted with her personality and knew when she would flare up and cater to her moods accordingly. So, all was well between Juanita and the staff till that day when the police barged in and created a ruckus.

Problem With Every Little Thing

One day, Juanita was in her usual peckish mood and started complaining more than usual. She let her anger come out and was in a particularly defiant mood complaining about anything and everything that was happening in the home.

The staff was left wondering what had hit her and tried to gauge exactly what triggered off her bad moods.  When Juanita was in a bad mood she stayed grumpy for a very long period and refused to snap off it. The staff was wondering how to deal with her when the unexpected happened.

The Room Was Uninhabitable

Juanita started complaining about some mold that had affected the room's walls and hence the place seemed unlivable at the moment. Whenever a staff entered her room she would go on a long raving and ranting mode, telling them how she finds it extremely difficult to live in the room. The staff had largely kept quiet about the incident since they were used to her long periods of grumpy behavior.

They also arranged for a group of professionals to attend to the room and inspect it thoroughly. The professionals failed to notice any signs of mold but Juanita was having none of it and continued to show her displeasure.

Stopped Paying Rent

She was unhappy and dissatisfied with the professionals' report. At this point, the details of the story were unclear as different versions of the story came up.  While Juanita spoke about one aspect of the story the staff added a different twist to the tale. It was difficult to form an opinion about the conflicting viewpoints.

As per the staff, Juanita suddenly stopped paying rent. She even gave a reason why she had stopped paying rent which seemed implausible to most. The debate continued about who was right and who was wrong.

Two Different Versions of the Story

Juanita said that since she didn't have that much time left in the world, she would stop paying rent. This seemed bizarre to most people. Going by this form of argument all the inmates of the retirement home was in a similar situation, so should they all stop paying rent?

Juanita's though had a different version of the story. As per her, the retirement home manager had told her to evict the home arbitrarily and would take her money even as she kept trying to pay rent. The conflict led to an unfortunate incident.

Time For The Police To Step In

One day, a police car arrived unexpectedly at the seniors' home. There was a patrol of officers who stomped their way inside the retirement community and climbed the stairs scaring the living daylights of the residents and the staff who had no clue what was happening.  They looked at each other uneasily.

Then, everyone jumped right off their skin when they heard the screams and shrieks. Only a minute later, the officers came out of Juanita's who started yelling and didn't want to let go of the screaming nonagenarian. They carried her off to the station.

Dragged to the Police Station

The images started surfacing of the 93-year-old lady handcuffed at the police station, in a state of distress, pleading with the police to let her go. The officers even asked her to pack their belongings and move out of the retirement home as she has been shown the door by the caretakers.

But she refused and the officers argued that they didn't have to hold her and they need them to escort her out of the retirement home. The netizens were divided on how Juanita was treated and how she should be treated.

A Few Days in The Jail

After the incident, Juanita had no choice but to stay at the jail simply because they didn't have any place to go. This created a major uproar in the media; many people were livid at the thought of how law enforcement treated the elderly woman.

Other details were mentioned in the reports that gradually were known to the netizens. This made them angrier than ever. There was more to the incident than met the eye. Perhaps there was another side of the story that the public did not know about.

The Other Side To The Story

Juanita had said that she and the retirement home were in talks with each other and they offered to find her another place to live as she had stopped paying the rent. It was then that the police officers were called. However, she refused to leave.

It was only after a few days that Juanita was released and had to start living in a ho9tel in Tavares. However, things got worse for her as she did not have any ways to support herself and she also refused to get any help.

A Public Outcry

According to Juanita, she misses her Bible, which she had left behind in her retirement home.  She also said that to sustain she needed more clothes. She also said that she was doing this for God.

Someone had taken the video of Juanita being arrested by the law enforcement officers. The video made its way to social media and soon the general public got to see the outrageous treatment meted out to an elderly frail lady. People started airing their views on Reddit and Facebook. Most of them had pretty strong notions about how law enforcement officers behave with vulnerable citizens.

Livid Netizens

While most netizens had the opinion that Juanita was in the wrong too as she refused to pay her rent. But they thought that there were better ways of handling the situation than harassing a 93-year-old.

There were Reddit users who said that the law could have done a better job of handling the situation. What happened to the belief system? What has the world come to? There was a dearth of basic humanity in the world which is sad.

The Police Releases a Statement

People were particularly miffed with the police who had manhandled a senior citizen, and there were photos of Juanita’s bruised arms began to circulate.

And, the fact that made the public irate was the fact that Juanita was arrested just two days before her 94th birthday. The police, however, refused to budge from their decision and arrest her and they released a statement standing by their decisions. There were certain sections of the people who wanted an apology from the law enforcement officers. Let's find out what the police had to say about Juanita.

The Police Releases Statement

The police released a statement saying, Ms. Fitzgerald, was particularly capable of making her own decisions, and hence if she had decided to decide between paying rent or not paying rent she had done so with her full mental acuity and hence must suffer the consequences for the same.

Juanita had been residing in the Franklin House facility since 2011. But as per the netizens, although she may have refused to pay the rent there were other ways to correct her, manhandling here was certainly not okay. Other debates were raging about how the lives of the elderly were not safe.

Find Places For the Elderly

Karen Twinem representing the National Church Residences which handles the facility was shocked beyond words about the incident. She also said that they were usually not like this. They try their best to help people and if things are not working out they try to find another place.

She also stated that the facility had come up with a solution every time something similar had cropped up. They had also contacted her family letting them know about how she was about to get evicted. But they had not replied and hence they did not have an alternative solution.

No Family to Come to Her Aid

Juanita also had this to speak about her family she didn't have anybody whom she could call her family at least they don't leave nearby. Her family includes her daughter and son who are both in their seventies and have to deal with their own set of health problems. They live in Tennessee, and she told that she doesn't want to disturb her son or daughter.

And hence the authority of the retirement home did not have anyone to call also since Juanita was not cooperating they simply couldn't find another solution.

Appalling Video

What enraged the public was the widely-circulated video that had the police body cam footage where Juanita was screaming at the police officers and was trying her best not to get arrested. In one section of the video, she eased her way out of the wheelchair and onto the ground to resist getting arrested.

Juanita was also seen screaming out loud that they were hating her and they should just let her go. It was a difficult thing to watch since the amount she owed was a bare minimum of just $161.

More Argument

The debate on the Reddit platform continued to gather steam as people were finding it hard to digest the fact that although it is okay not to pay taxes that runs in billions (offenders will usually go scotfree) it is okay for the cops to harass a 94-year-old as she has not paid her rent.

Most people on the social media platform believed the same that the treatment meted out to Juanita was inhuman but there was another aspect to the story that had the audience divided on the matter.

Arguments Against  Juanita

There was one user on Reddit who said that Juanita could pay the rent but still decided to do it.  She was evicted and when the police arrived to make her understand she simply refused to leave.

She is so self-reliant that she rejected multiple offers to stay in similar homes. The Reddit users were flummoxed as they could not understand exactly what did she want? She was unhappy with the home she was staying in and refused to comply with the authorities when she was asked to leave as she refused to pay rent.

Was There a Solution?

There was one user who questioned the rationality of Juanita's move. She refused to pay rent because she was in her 90s and the owners have to accept it no matter what. There was another user who said that Franklin House is public housing and not a business.

However, Franklin House is public housing, not a business and hence you have to pay a certain amount of money to live there. There was another person who spoke about the capitalist society which got everyone talking.

Blame it on Capitalism

The Redditors started broaching controversial topics saying the world now belongs to the capitalists. People like Jeff Bezos, Elon Musk, and Donald Trump may or may not pay the taxes and yet they don't end up in jail.

It seems that Juanita’s story highlights the pressing problems of modern society,  where the ultra-rich are mostly treated like royalty, and the poor and vulnerable are not given the respect and importance they deserve. The world has become unfair and because of the unfair distribution of wealth people like Juanita have to suffer.

Despicable Behavior

Another Reddit user said that America is a world of free, especially when you are free enough to pay for the same. It is a difficult country to live in for a person who is past 60.

Juanita's case had sparked off a debate that refused to die down. The debate continued to rage and covered topics from how the world favors the ultra-rich to law enforcement. Most social media users couldn't cope with the fact that the 94-year-old woman had been treated by the law enforcement officers. It was unfair and wrong.

Problems of The Society

Many social media users even said that the police officers in the country are mostly sociopaths and sadists. They think putting handcuffs on a frail old woman is the right thing to do and shows how strong they are. They seemed to enjoy creating trouble for the vulnerable.

While the heated debate showed no signs of stopping, Juanita's community thought of doing something constructive for her that would truly help her. What would they do that will change the situation for Juanita and make things better for her? Find out here.

Support From Community

The pictures and video of Juanita being arrested and how the scuffle led to large bruises went insanely viral and immediately caught the attention of the world. Soon enough it affected Franklin House’s online presence as their page was filled with bad reviews.

Several people had come to give donations, others came forward to pay the $500 bond, and a few set up GoFundMe accounts and tried to raise money for her so she could pay for the permanent residence. While the gestures deserve accolades we wonder whether they helped her.

As Fiesty As Ever

Nicole Lett, who was there for Juanita and got her out of jail and found lodgings in the motel, said that Juanita would always be fiercely independent.

Nicole said later that she could just not let Juanita stay in jail forever ever. Even though Juanita is 94 she is as feisty as ever and not ready to give up despite everything. However, Nicole said that though Juanita may be proud to admit as much she requires help at that moment and people should come forward to extend help in every way possible.

Help At Hand

Juanita was weary of the constant fight and said that they were going to Baker Act her. She expressed her exasperation while she was being interviewed. Erica Wilson, a homeless specialist for LifeStream was trying to help Juanita and said that since she is aged and has been stressed for so long she needs a breather.

They wanted to be there for her when she was ready to cope with it all. Till then she deserves to rest and a breather from all that mayhem that has been pursuing her for so long.