It was one of the most heated and emotional trials in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. The owners of St. Rita’s nursing home in St. Bernard Parish were acquitted in connection to the deaths of dozens of people they were supposed to be caring for.
For those who lost family members, the wounds are still tender even today, with many believing the site should have been turned into a memorial to the 35 patients who died there.
Rather than dedicate the site to a memorial, St. Rita’s co-owner Sal Mangano opened an assisted living community at the site of the tragedy. Mangano, along with a new team of co-owners, opened The Village this week.
They were quick to point out that the new facility is very different from St. Rita’s, despite the fact it’s in the same location. They say they learned from their mistakes and opened a retirement community, not a nursing home.
"We built probably the showplace of St. Bernard here right now,” CEO Kelly Barber said.
The assisted living community features brand new facilities and custom apartments, but the pain from the past continues to throb.
"They let people die,” resident Guy Armond said.
A jury took about four hours to acquit St. Rita's owners Sal and Mabel Mangano after 35 seniors died in their care. 11 years later, St. Bernard Parish residents still cannot accept this.
"Those people faced no charges, got away with that,” Armond said. “That's a shame."
Now, Sal Mangano is overseeing the property once again. While he didn’t want to comment on the sentiments of the Parish, residents did not hold back.
"Who’s to say it won't happen again?" Cherlyn Howard asked.
"In that home, after them people ran it after Katrina, they left those people in there,” Paul Buxworth said.
The owners say they want to acknowledge what happened while focusing on the future.
"This is our way to honor and respect the tragedies that occurred here in the past,” Barber said. “We're here to make something new out of a tragedy."
Barber vowed to regain the trust of the community but residents aren’t so sure.
"A lot of people lost their lives in there,” Buxworth said. “It's hard to trust someone after that.”
The residents and the owners remain at a standstill. While the owners are ready to move forward, residents say the wounds are too deep to ever be patched over.
The owners say they now have a comprehensive evacuation plan and will only accept residents who can be evacuated.