A Cobb County woman was arrested last week after allegedly punching her 79-year-old mother in the face after a confrontation over the volume of a radio.
According to the Cobb County Police, 48-year-old Tammy Renee Johnston was driving her car as her mother, Helen Dobbs, rode passenger down Shallowford Road in the East Cobb area of Marietta. When Johnston's mother turned the volume down on the car radio, Johnston purportedly struck her, leaving bruises on the elderly lady's forehead, left cheek and left eye.
A warrant was Johnston was issued last week. This past Friday she was arrested and charged with battery of an elderly person; a misdemeanor charge. Johnston, however, was released early Saturday morning on a $2,000 bond.
This incident marks yet another occurrence of elder abuse in Georgia. According to the Georgia Department of Human Services (GDHS), since 2007, reports of elder abuse have increased by 22%. Additionally, the GDHS states that for every single elder abuse case that's reported, another 23 cases go unreported. As a result, the actual amount of elder abuse incidents in Georgia is significantly higher than the reported numbers.
Anyone that suspects elder abuse in the home should call the GDHS elder abuse hotline at 1-888-774-0152. To report nursing home abuse, call Georgia's Long-Term Care Ombudsman Program at 1-800-878-6442.
Comments