A Florida assisted living community has been shuttered after police officers reported finding dozens of live and dead animals, residents who appeared to be soaked in urine, and animal feces throughout the structure. Eileen Chea Haran, owner and administrator of the Alita and John Haran ALF, in Homestead, FL, is expected to be arraigned on four counts of elder neglect on Friday.
Homestead Police Department records show that Haran was charged Feb. 3. The Miami Herald reports that the arrest occurred after a resident “reeking of urine” asked for help from the driver of a passing car and that driver called the police.
Florida Agency for Health Care Administration records show that the agency issued an immediate moratorium on admissions on Feb. 8 after inspectors were denied entry twice on Feb. 5 and again on Feb. 6 and Feb. 8. That order cites a Feb. 3 police report that states that officers found 45 cats, 16 dogs and a freezer containing 12 dead cats on the property. They also reportedly found a broken refrigerator with rotten food, a resident lying on what appeared to be a urine-soaked mattress, a burst water pipe that had damaged walls, and animal feces throughout the structure. The building’s four residents were removed and the place was condemned.
The six-bed facility, in operation since 2002, has encountered issues before, being cited for 30 deficiencies in 2007, among them that cats and dogs were loose on the premises and that a cat cage was being kept in the living room. The Feb. 3 police report noted that several litter boxes were found in the living room. Haran reportedly also operates an animal rescue organization.
Florida’s AHCA recommended that the facility’s license be revoked in 2009 after inspectors were denied entry, but two years later, the agency recommended that a new license be issued. The home also was cited for three violations in 2013 and for two violations 2014.
Haran’s attorney, Arthur Spiegel, told McKnight’s Senior Living that he could not comment at this time.
