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Trial for former Allen group home owner put on hold
By Conner Hammett, chammett@starlocalnews.com
The former owner of an Allen group home will have to wait until January 2013 to face criminal negligence charges.
Frank Nerkowski, 68, of Rockwall, was most recently set to face a jury on Monday. But a delay has postponed the trial until Jan. 21. It is the fourth such delay since his May 2010 indictment.
The charges stem from a February 2010 incident in which a resident living at one of his homes allegedly had to wait nine hours to receive needed medical care. Nerkowski, who is also charged with injury to a disabled person, also allegedly failed to supervise an employee's use of restraints on the same patient.
Nerkowski owned three homes for mentally challenged adults in Allen from 2004 to May 2010, when his contract to provide home and community based services for disabled adults was revoked by Texas Department of Aging and Disabilities Services (DADS) due to non-compliance with cost reporting requirements.
In May 2006, one of the homes, located at 801 Meadowcreek Drive, received two citations from DADS related to on-site inspection requirements. It was cited again five months later for fire safety compliance. In March 2009, the same home received a citation for not providing an environment "that ensures the health, safety, comfort and welfare of the individual." Another citation was issued in July 2009, again for failing to conduct an on-site inspection.
The homes are now operated by Nerkowski's ex-wife, Pam Heethuis.
Another employee of Nerkowski's, Michael Fuller, was given 60 days in jail and eight years of probation for injury to a disabled person earlier this month. He was arrested in June 2011 after police viewed footage of a man prosecutors said was Fuller beating 22-year-old group home resident Taylor Hartley in the face and body with his hands and a plastic toy rifle.
Nerkowski's attorney did not return a phone call seeking comment. The Collin County District Attorney's office has declined to discuss the details of the case.
Home and community based service providers offer guardians of disabled adults an alternative to traditional institutions and facilities. They are contracted by the Texas Department of Aging and Disability Services.
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