FROSTPROOF, Fla. — A woman who lost her license to run a Polk County care home in 2019 was caught operating unlicensed facilities in 2022 and assessed an $18,000 fine.
That fine was suspended as part of an agreement to close three homes she operated at that time.
Following through on our commitment to hold state regulatory agencies accountable, I-Team investigator Adam Walser uncovered evidence that the state has continued to let the facility provide care to people with severe mental illnesses.
“They’re just not being taken care of the way they should be”
“It is sad because you will see them all piled up on the front porch,” said Vassel Barnett, whose mother lives on the same street as one of the homes.
In a matter of minutes, we counted seven men entering and exiting a 1,400-square-foot Lakeview Park rental home last month.
Barnett has documented problems at that home for years.
Photos show residents rooting through garbage, roaming around in diapers, sleeping in a driveway, and sprawling out on the lawn.
“To see these patients out roaming through the community, asking for food, asking for drinks or what have you, and they're just not being taken care of the way they should be,” Barnett said.
A fight between two residents was captured on video in a neighbor’s yard, just a few feet from a boy on a bicycle.
“We have a concern not just for the kids in the community, but we're also concerned about these patients not receiving the care that they're supposed to be receiving,” Barnett said.
History of AHCA violations
Karnella Johnson was licensed to operate a five-bed adult family care home at the site, but the state revoked that license in 2019 after determining Johnson “failed to provide adequate and appropriate health care”.
Sheriff’s deputies went to the home in 2021 when a hospital couldn’t reach Johnson while trying to return a patient.
According to a report, Johnson told the deputy it was a rooming house and that “tenants choose to stay here when they have been taken to different facilities”.
“What's happening is the individual, Karnella Johnson, is reaping the benefits of these patients,” Barnett said.
Walkers sit in front of Johnson's men’s and women’s homes, which are located a short distance from each other in Frostproof.
The Florida Agency for Healthcare Administration, or AHCA, cited Johnson for operating assisted living facilities without a license in 2022, saying she provided housing, meals and medication assistance without being licensed.
One of the facilities was in the same house that was cited in 2019, where we spotted the seven men.
The report said residents signed over their Social Security disability benefits to Johnson for rent, and she returned a $54 monthly allowance.
AHCA fined Johnson $18,000 last year, but the fine was suspended under the condition that she cease operation.
62 calls to 9-1-1 in two years
Records obtained by the I-Team show that may not be the case.
Deputies or fire rescue have responded to the homes 62 times in two years.
“We will see the fire trucks come out. We will see the ambulance come, and they're being called on numerous occasions to these group homes,” Barnett said.
Reports describe an overdose call, a schizophrenic resident threatening harm to others and hearing voices after going off his medicine, and a resident who drank bleach and started banging his head on the refrigerator.
One patient called 9-1-1 to report Johnson punished her for not cleaning her room.
“She took my phone. She took my phone and everything, and now I can’t do nothing on my phone,” the resident told the 9-1-1 dispatcher.
Another caller reported his roommate crossed a line.
“This guy that lives here, he keeps feeling on me. And that’s, I think, sexual harassment,” the resident told the dispatcher.
“This is real sexual harassment. This has been happening to a lot of people inside this group home. We know that right now,” another resident said in the call.
The residents eventually put Karnella Johnson on the line.
“They saying the other one’s touching him, I think. I think that’s how they’re saying,” she said.
The case was closed without an arrest.
Home operator declines comment, someone requests deputies
We tried to talk to Karnella Johnson when she arrived at one of the homes.
Two residents told us to leave, including one who was involved in that fight.
Johnson later drove away, ignoring our request to answer questions about the situation.
Someone called 9-1-1.
“I own a transition house and there’s a guy here, he’s out here taking pictures of my clients, the house and all,” the caller said.
The identity of the caller was redacted, so we could not be certain it was Johnson.
Deputies arrived moments later.
“We started getting a few calls, so we figured we would come check it out,” the responding deputy told us.
“A lot of things have been reported to law enforcement, but it seems as though there's nothing being done,” Barnett said.
We first contacted AHCA about the group homes on April 19th, but we didn’t get a response.
When we reached out again last week, a spokesperson emailed us to say, “Thank you for sharing this information. Any information related to our review will be made available once completed.”
If you believe there is an unlicensed healthcare home operating in your neighborhood or if you have a story you think the I-Team should investigate, email us at adam@abcactionnews.com
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