Man With Dementia Wanders From Care Home, Dies in Desert: Lawsuit

A 70-year-old man who wandered out of a care home was found dead in the Arizona desert hours later, a lawsuit has stated.
Miguel Moreno was living with dementia at a care home in Tucson. He had only been at the Park Senior Villas, La Canada, for a week when he wandered away undetected.
According to a lawsuit his family had launched against the care home, he entered the retirement home on July 31, 2023, and first walked out on August 2 after lifting a bolt on the main gate. A staff member followed him and brought him back.
The lawsuit alleges that on August 5, Moreno wandered out again while landscapers had left a gate open. Police officers at the Pima County Sheriff’s Office tried to locate him that day.
A sheriff’s report states: “It was determined that landscapers had left a gate propped open in the yard area which was the most likely avenue that Mr. Moreno left in.”
It was 109 degrees Fahrenheit in Tuscon on August 5, ABC 15 Arizona reported, and the sheriff’s office called for air support. Family members told the news station that they joined the search and felt guilty that they had air conditioning in their cars while their father was out in the desert.
A helicopter located him about 250 yards from the care home in the desert.
“Air support is who found him…not under a bush, not under any shade, just where he gave out,” Moreno’s daughter, Mina Hernandez, said.
The Arizona Department of Health Services fined Park Senior Villas $500.
Newsweek reached out to Park Senior Villas via email for comment on Tuesday.
“An investigation into the facility found that the manager failed to ensure that the premises and equipment were free from a condition or situation that may cause a resident to suffer physical injury,” ABC 15 added.
An ADHS report found that the landscapers were due to come on Wednesdays and should not have been at the care home on a Saturday, the day Moreno went missing.
An obituary on the website of Carillo’s Tucson Mortuary states that Moreno is survived by his wife of 26 years, Guadalupe Moreno, his three daughters, grandchildren and great-grandchildren.
He was born in Nogales, Sonora, Mexico, and grew up in Quemado, New Mexico.
He later moved to Tucson, where he started his family.
“Although he faced challenges living with early stages of Dementia, his spirit remained witty, loving and lighthearted. We will forever cherish his playful spirit, his love for music and compassion for others,” the obituary states.