A Massachusetts assisted living facility is facing a lawsuit after a resident was allegedly found dead in his room more than a week after anyone last checked on him.
Felipe Dip, 64, was discovered dead in July 2023 at Chestnut Park at Cleveland Circle in Brighton, according to a lawsuit filed by his sons in Suffolk County Superior Court.
By the time staff found him, his body was “badly decomposed,” the lawsuit claims.
Dip’s sons are now suing the facility, its parent company Benchmark Senior Living LLC, and an unnamed employee responsible for his care, alleging negligence and negligent infliction of emotional distress.
According to the lawsuit, staff should have realized something was wrong when Dip stopped showing up for scheduled meals.
The suit claims Dip missed about 27 meals over a nine-day period. The facility’s protocol allegedly required staff to conduct a welfare check if a resident missed meals, but the lawsuit alleges no welfare checks were done.
Dip’s room was also reportedly equipped with motion sensors. According to the family’s lawyers, the last recorded movement in his room was on July 12, 2023.
“The combination of Felipe Dip’s prolonged and repeated failure to appear for meals and the nine-day absence of any motion in his room provided the Defendants with ample and repeated notice that Felipe Dip required immediate attention,” the lawsuit states.
Staff found Dip dead on July 21, 2023.
“By that time, his body was badly decomposed,” attorney Thomas E. Flaws wrote. “Felipe Dip’s body had been decomposing in his room, undiscovered, for approximately nine days.”
The lawsuit alleges the facility had a duty to monitor Dip’s condition, check on him regularly, make sure he was attending scheduled meals and respond to any signs that he might be in distress.
Dip’s sons say the circumstances of his death have caused severe emotional distress.
“The Defendants’ negligent failure to monitor, check on, or otherwise attend to Felipe Dip for a period of approximately nine days — notwithstanding his repeated failure to appear for meals and the complete absence of any motion detected in his room — was conduct so far beyond the bounds of reasonable care as to foreseeably cause severe emotional distress to members of Felipe Dip’s immediate family,” the lawsuit states.
Benchmark Senior Living has denied the allegations.
“The health and safety of our residents is our top priority,” the company said in a statement to WBZ. “Though we cannot comment fully on the merits of active litigation, we strongly disagree with the description of the events and allegations contained in the lawsuit and will defend against them.”
Flaws said the family is seeking answers about what happened inside the facility.
“Mr. Dip was entrusted to the care of an assisted living facility that families rely on to keep their loved ones safe,” he said in a statement to WBZ. “The allegations in this case raise serious questions about whether that trust was honored.”
He added, “The family deserves answers, and we intend to pursue them through the legal process.”
This is terrible! It’s criminal!! They certainly must be held accountable! If I were the facility I would not want to comment either had I neglected someone like they neglected this poor man.
I would check on my daddy regularly to make sure he was ok. I lived with him and when I went to work I would call throughout the day. If I ever couldn’t get him, I would call my neighbor and she would go check on him. I can’t imagine anyone being dead that long and nobody caring enough to check on him.
Please Tell Me How You Have No Responsibilities In This Matter if This Body was Badly Decomposed. Someone was NOT doing THEIR JOB of Taking CARE of this MAN! SHAME ON ALL OF YOU!!! NO EXCUSES!!! PRAYERS TO HIS FAMILY LIVING THROUGH THIS HORRIBLE TRAGEDY 🙏!!!!!!! 🐨 🙏🙏🙏
Disgusting