George Houser is representing himself, his company Forum Medical Group and one of its nursing home facilities, Moran Lake Convalescent Center, in Floyd County Superior Court. Forum Medical is being sued by a woman who claims the poor care her father received at the Moran Lake Road facility was the direct cause of his death.
Click to see a copy of the indictment.
The plaintiff, Loretta Terhune, said her father, Morris Ellison, was in the nursing home only a few months before his death and had been in largely good health before entering the facility.
According to court testimony, Ellison died of dehydration and starvation and had a broken hip that had gone untreated.
Terhune testified that her father did not receive adequate food and water, was living in substandard conditions and was often dirty, and his walls were covered in human feces.
Houser had entered no evidence or witnesses into the record during the trial’s discovery period and did not attend pre-trial hearings. At one point Judge Bryant Durham became visibly upset with Houser when the defendant’s own testimony differed from accounts he gave during a deposition.
Houser said in depositions that he was the sole owner of Forum Medical, but in court Tuesday Houser testified his wife Rhonda Washington Houser was the owner of the company.
“Mr. Houser, you didn’t tell the truth. Were you lying then, or are you lying now?” Durham asked after jurors left the courtroom.
The judge repeatedly told Houser to “answer questions responsibly” and to ask questions of witnesses, not testify through questions.
“I don’t want to have to find you in contempt,” Durham warned.
But 30 minutes later Houser was found in contempt when he tried to create a line of questioning Durham said was not relevant to the case.
Houser was fined $200 and ordered to report to the Floyd County Sheriff’s Office after his trial ends, which could be today.
Shortly after being found in contempt Houser presented a bankruptcy motion he had filed in court earlier that day.
The filing claims Houser is worth between $10 million and $50 million, but the defendant said all his money was tied up in property and not liquid assets.
During a short court break, Houser got into an argument with a sheriff’s deputy when he tried to speak directly to the plaintiff and not to her attorney.
Houser was later admonished when he used a racial slur twice when addressing the jury.
Terhune is asking for an unspecified amount in damages and would like to be awarded enough to cover the costs of medical and funeral expenses.
Closing arguments are expected today.
Houser is also facing federal criminal charges in connection to Forum Medical Group. Houser and his wife are accused of defrauding Medicaid and Medicare out of $30 million that prosecutors said should have been used to provide patient care, but instead allegedly went to purchase cars and property. The two pleaded not guilty in April. Houser is due in federal court on Tuesday for a hearing.
Three of Houser’s nursing homes, one of them in Brunswick, were closed in 2007 after the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services put Forum on notice that it would no longer pay for care unless drastic improvements were made.
The Rome facilities were closed after they were excluded from the Medicare and Medicaid programs because they fell below standards for reimbursement for care of elderly or low-income patients.
Good riddance to him and his wife. Ms. Terhune, I hope your family is awarded every penny George Houser has. He should be made to liquidate every property he has.