Ever catch yourself wondering, “Did we really double-check that hire?” When it comes to criminal background checks in senior living, there’s just no room for error—or wishful thinking.

A senior living community in Galt is now under fire after hiring a certified nursing assistant “with a known criminal history of abuse,” according to documents obtained by KCRA3 from the California Department of Public Health (CDPH). During a review of the police report, CDPH found that the individual admitted to sexually assaulting six residents. That’s right—six.

So how did this happen? Why wasn’t the process followed? Here’s the chilling part: it was. According to a CDPH report, the community did conduct a background check. It clearly revealed the man had pled guilty in 2019 to “knowingly touching another person with the intent to injure, insult or provoke.” The administrator told investigators that the applicant explained it was a domestic issue and not related to vulnerable adults. She chose to hire him anyway.

If this situation has you double-checking your own hiring protocols, good. It should. Abuse is abuse, regardless of context. It doesn’t matter whether the crime happened inside a home or a community—what matters is whether we choose to act on the information we have. Ignoring a documented history of violence isn’t a judgment error; it’s a failure in protecting those who count on us most.

According to this article from KCRA3, the center has now been cited $225,000 in penalties. But the real cost? That was paid by the residents who suffered irreparable harm.

Please—don’t wait for a crisis to force reflection. Take an hour this week to audit your files. Re-review background checks. Ask yourself the tough questions. When it comes to criminal background checks in senior living, following the letter of the law isn’t enough. It’s about protecting lives.

Stay well and stay informed!