Patton State Hospital
In February, I wrote a series of stories about an alleged rape at Patton State Hospital.
I got the story through dumb luck. The alleged victim called me from a hospital phone and told me the heinous details.
But I wrote the stories anyway, and nailed down from official sources that the alleged perpatrator was still working at the hospital.
Soon, the man would be arrested, then charged with a slew of sex crimes.
Now, on Aug. 26, he pleads guilty to sex-crime charges, meaning that we have proof that sexual abuse by an employee on a patient has occurred this year.
By Robert Rogers
Staff Writer
SAN BERNARDINO -- A former Patton State Hospital worker
pleaded guilty Tuesday to committing a lewd act on a patient.
Daniel Alawoya, 58, faces an Oct. 7 sentencing in San
Bernardino Superior Court.
Alawoya was arrested in March after a patient alleged Alawoya had
raped her.
During the investigation, hospital officials moved Alawoya away from
patient interaction, but did not put him on leave.
Alawoya had worked at the hospital about 16 months before being fired
the day of his arrest.
Patton spokeswoman Cindy Barrett declined to comment on whether the
hospital was certain Alawoya did not victimize others.
"Safety and security of our individuals is very important to us,"
Barrett said. "We take every accusation very seriously and we
investigate."
The allegations first became public in February, when a 29-year-old
patient contacted The Sun by phone and described the assault.
Alawoya continued to work while the investigation proceeded, then was
arrested in March.
The victim, in a telephone interview from Patton, said she felt
vindicated but was still afraid.
"I feel justice is served, but the hospital failed me and I don't
trust them here to keep me safe to this day," she said. The Sun does
not identify victims of sexual assault.
Alawoya had originally faced charges of sodomy, forced oral
copulation, committing a lewd act with a dependant adult and criminal
threats, according to court records.
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Andrew Edwards. E-mail Andrew here.
yeah the sexual assualts happen all the time , alot of staff have sex with their patients. i am speaking as a former patient . it is all part of the federal probe that happened several years ago.
i have a sister who has been at Patton for over 17 years in that time she has been beat by staff.she has been raped impregnated, given the day after pill without her knowledge.over that amount of years has been denied every H-corpus.
i am doing a research paper on Patton State Hospital...if anyone has any info on the hospital's patients, crimes happpening etc. Please email me...I am finding it very hard to write a paper on a place that is so secretive and everyone refuses to comment or talk to the general public. Please!!!
thank you Rainbow_pride_411@yahoo.com
i was was repetedly assaulted and abused and at one point raped by a rehab therapist.....all of this happingin while there was notheing wrong with me...i had no mental illness and finally after defending myself in court (THE FIRST IN HISTORY ALLOWED TO DO SO) i won and was realeased....i am now majoring in psychology in hopes to help..really help not hurt like they do at PSH!!! Rainbow i have many names and number of doctors who tormented their patients
I have a nephew in patton. Well i think he is still there. I was in contact with him but was in a very abusive relationship and had to move and change phone numbers. Staff wont give me any kind of information as to if he is there dead or nothing. If you could help me i would be very thankful.