A Heated Discussion
This was the first time that the retirement home experienced something like that. Out of nowhere, patrol officers stormed up the stairs with their loud footsteps echoing through the nursing home. What was once a peaceful retirement home was now in complete disarray.
A few of the residents and staff members gathered under the stairs to see what was going on. One nurse quickly grabbed her cell phone and began recording. Suddenly, a loud scream resonated through the halls.
The Perfect Environment
This story caused quite a controversy on social media platforms and started a debate on how society treats the elderly. Observers think the situation shows an unfortunate lack of compassion and brutality, while others think it’s more complicated.
You can decide which way you feel after reading the full story of this 93-year-old woman who had to confront law enforcement.
Conflict
93-year-old Tennesee resident Juanita Fitzgerald made a home for herself over the last ten years at a retirement home located in Eustis, Florida.
Living in a retirement community provides independence to those who crave it but still allows them to be surrounded by people their own age as well as staff to help whenever needed. It appears that this is everything and more that those in the autumn of their lives are looking for. However, in this story, one comes to learn that not everything is as it seems.
A Lonely Life
Conflict is an unavoidable aspect of life, and it even occurs in peaceful retirement communities.
However, conflicts can also sometimes arise in this type of environment. Juanita Fitzgerald got into trouble with the Lake County Police Department, and suddenly the calm of the nursing home was shattered.
When the situation transpired, only a handful of people were aware of what was happening. It’s now being debated whether the circumstances were fair or outrageous and unjustified now that the reasons have been publicized.
They Were Used To It
Everyone who knew Juanita knew that she preferred to keep to herself. She was not on good terms with her family, and sadly, she never received any visits.
She wasn’t a social butterfly by any means and had no true friends among the other seniors. Her relationship with the staff was also quite strange.
Behavioral Changes
She normally tried her best to be kind to the staff members. However, in the event that something didn’t go her way, she was prone to having fits and being unreasonably rude.
These episodes would continue for hours, but the staff knew how to deal with Juanita. They had been dealing with her for almost a decade, so they didn’t have any big problems with her. However, that all changed on that fateful day.
She Couldn’t Live There
One morning, Juanita began complaining more than she normally does. All of a sudden, she appeared to have an issue with everything about the retirement home. From its staff members to the way things are run.
This was all unusual for Juanita and the staff could not help but wonder what happened to cause this drastic change in her. Her fits now lasted for weeks, and most of her complaints were centered around one specific problem.
She Stopped Paying
Juanita went on and on about how there was mold in her room, and that she could not live in such an environment. The mold in Juanita’s room would drive her to rant every time one of the nurses entered her room.
The retirement village hired professionals to inspect her room, but they could not find any mold. They informed Juanita of the results, but this only made matters worse.
Not Adding Up
The report provided by the professionals meant nothing to her. The details of the story blur here, as Juanita or the retirement home staff, will give you different versions.
The staff’s version includes Juanita’s refusal to pay her rent. What was even more bizarre was the reason why she stopped.
Police Steps In
Juanita claimed that she could pass away at any given moment and that paying rent was essentially useless. She did not know how much time she had left to live her life.
But what Juanita recalls from the events that transpired, differs greatly from the staff’s version. Despite continuing to pay rent, she was evicted arbitrarily by the retirement home manager. It was a truly appalling episode that culminated this disagreement.
Handcuffed
One day, a police car pulled up in front of the seniors’ home. A patrol of officers came out, entered the retirement community, and started climbing up the stairs as the shocked residents stared at them.
Then, everyone could hear the screams and shrieks. A minute later, the officers came down the stairs holding Juanita, who didn’t stop yelling at them to let go of her. Then, they got her in the car and took her to the station.
They Sent Her To Jail
Soon enough, images surfaced of the 93-year-old lady sitting at the police station, handcuffed and in a state of distress, asking the officers to let her go home.
According to the reports, the officers had tried to convince her to pack her belongings and leave the building, as she had been evicted by the caretakers. But she refused. The officers argued they weren’t left with any option other than holding her and escorting her out of the retirement home.
Nuances To The Story
After the incident, Juanita stayed a few days in jail, as she didn’t have any other place to go. This has caused a big uproar in the media; many people have found how law enforcement has treated the elderly woman outrageous.
However, a few more details of the story have made it to the reports. Apparently, there’s more to this case than what it might have seemed at first glance.
“For God”
Juanita had admitted that the retirement home offered to find her another place to live when she stopped paying rent and before the police officers were called. However, she refused to move elsewhere.
After a few days, Juanita was released and started living in a Hotel in Tavares. However, she barely has any means to support herself and rejects any help that is offered to her.
Who Was Really The Bad Guy?
According to Juanita, the only thing she misses is her Bible, which she left in her old room in the retirement community. “I could probably get some more clothes. I’m not doing this for me. I’m doing this for God,” she said.
When the body cam footage from the police arresting Juanita made its way onto social media, it sparked a public outcry and became the topic of heated debates on Reddit and Facebook.
A Lot Of Opinions
Only those there can truly say what happened with any footage taken out of context. But the evidence that we can see paints a good picture of what happened. It seems like both sides could be considered equally in the wrong.
One could argue that the police were only doing their job. She had been evicted and wasn’t complying with the police. But again, maybe it should have been handled with more understanding.
Backlash
No one would have batted an eye if the police had hauled out a tough-looking man in his 30s. So the question is, should they have acted differently under the circumstances of getting a 94-year-old woman out?
But when it comes to not paying rent and dragging an elderly woman out who won’t comply, which is worse? The internet had a lot of opinions to give.
Outrage
While most netizens agreed that Juanita was in the wrong for refusing to pay her rent, the treatment of the whole situation by the police attracted a lot of backlash.
“Damnit. Why can’t the cops just ignore the law and selectively enforce the law according to their own personal belief systems?!? What kind of world is this?!?” one Redditer wrote.
Writing Up A Statement
People were outraged by the way the police had manhandled a senior citizen, and photos of the bruises on Juanita’s arms began to circulate.
And, to add insult to injury, Juanita was arrested just two days before her 94th birthday.
The police, however, remained steadfast in their decision to arrest her and even released a statement defending their actions.
Defending Their Actions
The police department no doubt had to move quickly to cover their ground. They couldn’t just leave what had happened up to public opinion. So they decided to write up a statement about the incident.
They wanted to reassure the public that they could justify their actions when they took the elderly woman out of her own home. But would it be enough?
A Statement From Her Residence
“Since all available options were refused by Ms. Fitzgerald, who appeared to have the mental capacity to form and make her own decisions, the officers had no alternative but to take Fitzgerald into custody,” the statement said.
Juanita had been living in the Franklin House facility since 2011. But was the physical force used to detain the 93-year-old really necessary?
“Extremely Rare”
After the police came forward with their statement, it looked like they might win the public appeal. But just as everyone thought things were settled, Juanita’s residence had something to say too.
Of course, they didn’t want to give any kind of biased statement that sided with one side or the other. Still, it stirred up even more controversy among the public.
Her Family
Karen Twinem of National Church Residences – which operates the facility – was shocked and appalled by the incident. “This is extremely rare… We try to find places for people,” she said.
She also reiterated that the facility had tried to get Juanita help many times before things came to a head. They had also tried to contact her family to let them know she’d been evicted.
The Footage
“I don’t have anybody. My family is in Tennessee and I told them not to tell my son anything that’s going on,” she said.
Juanita has a 70-year-old daughter and a 76-year-old son, who, as she said, live in Tennessee. But, she said that her children have their own health issues to deal with and she doesn’t want to worry them or get them involved.
Both Sides
The upsetting police body cam footage shows Juanita screaming at the police officers and resisting arrest. At one point in the video, she slid out of her wheelchair and onto the ground to make arresting her more difficult.
Juanita screamed: “Ow, you’re hurting me” several times in the video. It’s a difficult thing to watch – especially when you consider that what she owed amounted to just $161.
Social Media
Now that many sides had given their view of the incident, it was much easier for the public to come forward with their opinions. It seemed that a lot of people still sympathized with Jaunita.
A common proclamation was that the cops should have shown the woman a bit more dignity. Police have sensitivity training, so why didn’t they know to use it in this particular circumstance?
Heated Debate
With social media stirred up more on the incident than ever, people took to social media platforms like Reddit and Facebook to give their two cents. From people defending the elderly woman to people defending the cops.
Reddit particularly had a lot of people whipped into a frenzy, and their pure uncensored opinions were as follows.
Another Side To The Story
“It’s not ok to not pay your rent at 94 because you really can’t but it is totally fine to avoid billions and billions of taxes. Welcome to humanity,” one dismayed Reddit user wrote, sparking a heated debate on the platform.
Some agreed with the opinion, but others were less sympathetic to Juanita’s situation when they found out that there was another side to the story.
Disagreements
One Redditor seemed to have more insight into the story than others. He replied to the other Redditor’s post with a remark that swayed the opinion of others that were on the fence about the entire incident.
What this Redditor said sparked controversy all over again when they gave an important detail. One that people hadn’t considered before.
What Were They Supposed To Do?
“…except this woman could (pay rent) but just refused to despite it. Then she was evicted and refused to cooperate in any capacity when the police arrived,” another Reddit user argued.
“Then she rejected multiple offers to help her keep a roof over her head. I mean what exactly is it you suggest should have been done?
The Problem With Capitalism
“She gets to live rent-free wherever she likes, and the actual owners of the place just have to suck it up until she dies because she’s old?” the user continued. “There are plenty of issues in the world that highlight the problems you talk about. This old bat is not one of them.”
However, Franklin House is actually public housing, not a business. Then, the first user replied with a point about the issue with our capitalist society that got everyone thinking.
Land Of The Free
“I think Jeff Bezos, Donald Trump, Elon Musk, Apple, and the list goes on can pay their taxes, and they can pay much more than they’re used to without even knowing they’re paying it but yet they don’t. And they don’t end up in prison, do they?” the Redditor retorted.
Many thought that Juanita’s story had only highlighted the problems in modern society – where the ultra-rich are treated like royalty and the poor and vulnerable are treated like second-rate citizens.
Abuse Of Power?
“America, land of the free, as long as you are rich enough to pay for it,” another user wrote in agreement. “This is honestly why I hope I don’t live past like 80.”
The debate raged on, and the topic of discussion moved away from the ultra-rich and on to law enforcement. Most couldn’t get over how the officers had handled the 5-foot-tall, 100-pound elderly woman.
The Community Comes Together
“Anyone need any more evidence that most police officers in this country are sociopaths and sadists? They put this extraordinarily elderly and helpless woman in handcuffs…because they enjoy causing pain,” one Redditor wrote.
But, while people pondered the problems in society and raged on Reddit, Juanita’s community decided to do something constructive to help her.
Fiercely Independent
The disturbing footage of Juanita being arrested and the photos of her massive purple bruises went insanely viral and got attention worldwide. Soon, Franklin House’s page was inundated with bad reviews.
Several people came forward to offer her donations, others offered to pay her $500 bond, and a few set up GoFundMe accounts to raise money for her so she can pay for a permanent residence.
Social Workers Try To Help
Niocole Lett, who helped Juanita get out of jail and find lodgings in the motel, said that Juanita had always been “fiercely independent.”
“I just couldn’t let her stay in jail any longer,” Nicole said. “She’s 94, and she’s still feisty as ever… She doesn’t want people’s help, she wants to be on her own. But unfortunately, she needs the help right now because she doesn’t have anything anymore.”
Will She Accept Help?
After numerous people tried to help Juanita out. Word spread about her struggles to LifeStream. The organization was willing to look into her case. Afterward, they decided that they would try to help her in any way they could.
But there was something that they hadn’t considered when they decided to help her. She had a history of not wanting help, so would things go as expected?
The Florida Mental Health Act
“They’re going to Baker Act me!” exclaimed Juanita as she swatted her hands at her exasperated caseworkers while being interviewed. Erica Wilson is a homeless specialist for LifeStream who is trying to help Juanita.
She said: “Given her age and her stress, we have decided to step back for a couple of days. Hopefully, she will accept when the time is right.”
She Can’t Be Taken Away
The Florida Mental Health Act of 1971, known by people like Jaunita as The Baker Act, encourages family members to be admitted into a psychiatric ward if they need the care.
This is Juanita’s worst nightmare. But the elderly woman doesn’t understand exactly what The Baker Act can and can’t enforce on her if her children decided to try it on her.
The fiercely independent woman would take comfort in the fact that the Florida Mental Health Act cannot force her to go to a psychiatric ward. The act states that whoever the concerned party is needs to understand exactly where they would be going.
Furthermore, the individual the act is attempted on cannot be taken involuntarily. This means that Jaunita can say no and keep trying to make her way all on her own. But maybe one day, she’ll finally accept some help from someone.