Family Sues After 84-Year-Old Found Frozen Outside Ohio Nursing Home, Alleging Unlocked Exit

The family of 84-year-old Alvera Meuti has filed a wrongful-death lawsuit after she was found unresponsive on a patio at the Avenue at Warrensville Care and Rehabilitation Center in Warrensville Heights, Ohio. The complaint alleges recklessness and negligence by the facility's owners and a staff nurse, and seeks accountability for what it says was a preventable death from hypothermia.

What the lawsuit alleges

According to the complaint reviewed by PEOPLE, Meuti went missing the evening of Dec. 23, 2024. She suffered from multiple medical conditions and required regular checks. The suit says a staff check at 9:30 p.m. that night found Meuti's room empty, but "no report was made, and no action was taken" to locate her at that time.

The family alleges Meuti's room was next to an exit door that had been left unlocked, and that a keypad and alarm — measures that would normally be expected to prevent an unsupervised resident from leaving undetected — were not in place. The complaint says Meuti was later found lying on her back on an outdoor patio near the exit, beside a door that had locked behind her and prevented re-entry. She died of hypothermia, the suit alleges.

Timeline details cited

Prosecutors and the lawsuit cite additional times: around 12:36 a.m., a nurse attempted to call Meuti's family to see whether she was with them; when there was no answer, the nurse remained on duty. The next morning, at approximately 6:30 a.m., the nurse told a supervisor she had not seen Meuti during her shift and staff initiated a "Code Purple," the complaint says. Meuti was then located outside.

Criminal case and responses

Prosecutors have charged a nurse identified in the lawsuit, Amber Henderson, with offenses that include involuntary manslaughter and misdemeanor patient neglect. Henderson was arrested on Jan. 16, 2025, and has pleaded not guilty. Her next scheduled court appearance is Jan. 27, 2025. Henderson's attorney, Charles W. Bennett, told local media his client "did nothing wrong" and that he will "vigorously defend her."

Attorneys for the facility's owners did not respond to requests for comment, the lawsuit notes.

Claims and relief sought

The complaint asserts that the facility failed to maintain adequate staffing and secure exits, and that those failures directly contributed to Meuti's injuries and death. The family seeks to hold the defendants accountable under claims of wrongful death, recklessness and negligence.

Context

Allegations in lawsuits are claims that must be proven in court. Criminal charges are pursued by prosecutors and must also be proved beyond a reasonable doubt in a separate legal process. The outcome of either the civil lawsuit or the criminal case has not been determined.